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MEMOIR 


OF 


Rev  James  M.  Challiss. 


JOHN  R.  MURPHY,  D.  D. 


PHILADELPHIA: 

PUBLISHED   FOR  THE  FAMILY. 

1870. 


PItlNTED  BV 

JAS.   B.   ROOUEKS  CO., 

l"lllt,ADEI.PHIA. 


WHOSE    V/ISE   AND   TENDER    CARE 

EVER  GAVE  CHEER  TO  HIS  HOME  AND  HIS  HEART; 

WHOSE  CONSISTENT  CHRISTIAN  LIFE  AND 
EARNEST  CO-WORKINGS 

add5:d  efficiency  to  his  own  life  V/ORK: 

AND 


WHOSE    HIGHEST    GOOD    HE    SO    ARDENTLY   DESIRED, 

AND  WHOSE  FILIAL  LOVE  ADDED  COMFORT  AND  PLEASURE 

TO  THE  CLOSING  YEARS  OF  HIS  LIFE;— 

TO  THESE  LOVED  AND  LOVING  ONES 

THIS    MEMORIAL   OF   THE    HUSBAND    AND    FATHER 

IS  RESPECTFULLY  INSCRIBED  BY 

THE  AUTHOR. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER     I. 

PAGI 
ANCESTRAL  HISTORY— ITS  MOULDING  INFLUENCE. 

Huguenot  Ancestors — Their  Conflicts  with  Error— Contending  for  the  Truth — 
Continued  Persecutions  —  Trials  of  Faith  and  Triumph  of  Principles  — 
Moulding  Infliience  of  Antecedents IJ 

CHAPTER    II. 

PARENTAGE  AND  FAMILY. 

Paternal  Ancestors — Exiled  from  France — Their  Home  in  England — True  to 
Early  Princijiles — History  of  Family — Maternal  Ancestors — An  Old  English 
Family — Their  Descendants — Father  and  Mother  of  Rev.  James  M.  Challiss 
— Their  Emigration  to  America — Their  Marriage— The  Two  Sons — Death  of 
the  Father — The  Mother  Moves  to  Salem,  N.  J. — Her  Anxieties  and  Efforts 
— Her  Second  Husband — His  Death — The  Mother's  Care  and  Fidelity  to 
her  Three  Children — A  Good  Christian  Mother  —  Her  Death  —  Family 
History Z'.', 

CHAPTER    III. 

CHILDHOOD  AND  YOUTH. 

Little  Known  of  Childhood's  Thoughts — Their  Influences  upon  Life  Seldom 
Recognized — Childhood  and  Youth  of  Mr.  Challiss — Character  of  the  Child 
— Childhood  Home— Orphanage— Apprenticeship— Deacon  Mulford— Happy 
Influence  of  Early  Life — Freedom  from  Evil  Habit.s — Recollections  of  Old 
Friends 52 


6  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTEE    IV. 

THE  YOUNG  CHRISTIAN. 

Soul  Culture — Early  Religions  Impressions — The  Young  Pharisee — The  Pleading 
Pnl  ilican — The  Christian  Employer — "  Deacon  Mulford  of  Precious  Memory" 
— Rejoicing  in  Christ — Baptism — Encouraged  by  Pastor — Growing  in  Grace 
— At  Work  for  Christ — Anxious  for  Consistency — Casting  off  Soldier  Clothes 
— How  Regarded  by  his  Contemporaries — His  Future  Work  Foreshadowed.    G2 

CHAPTER    V. 

ENTERING  THE   MINISTRY. 

Promise  of  Usefulness — Exercising  his  Gifts — Conducting  Meetings  —  Trial 
Sermons — Anxiety  of  his  Mother — Almost  a  Failure — Discouragements  and 
Hopes — Licensed  to  Preach — Looking  for  Work — Visit  to  Cape  May — 
Seeking  Better  Preparation  for  the  Work — A  Student  with  Dr.  Holcomb, 
of  Philadelphia,  and  Rev.  Joseph  Sheppard,  of  Salem — One  Night  at  Prince- 
ton— Seeking  a  Field  of  Labor — How  he  got  to  Upper  Freehold — Youthful 
Appearance — Strange  Surmises — Great  Surprise — Happy  Impressions — Call 
to  the  Pastorate — Reminiscences  of  Contemporaries 71 

CHAPTEE    VI. 

FIRST  PASTORATE  COMMENCED. 

April,  1822— September,  1823. 
His  Field  of  Labor — Its  Material,  Character,  History,  and  Development — The 
Upper  Freehold  Baptist  Church — Previous  Baptist  History — The  Church 
Constituted — Early  Struggles  'and  Growth — Condition  of  the  Church  in 
1822— The  Field  not  Inviting— A  Place  for  Work— Mr.  Challiss  Enters  the 
Pastorate — His  Estimate  of  the  Church — He  Goes  to  the  New  Jersey  Baptist 
Association — "The  Old  Lame  Horse" — The  Experience  and  Remembrance 
of  that  Meeting— The  Fathers  Gone— Ordination — Gains  Confidence- First 
Baptism — In  Popular  Favor — The  Danger — Judicious  Advice  of  his  Pastor 
— Fore-warned,  Fore-armed — His  Marriage — The  I'oung  Wife — Her  Family 
and  Early  History — The  Prudent  Housewife— Limited  Resources — Salary — 
Personal  Efforts— Teaching  School — Farming  Lots— Careful  Management 
— The  Pleasant  Home— Estimate  of  Character— Mrs.  Challiss — As  Wife  and 
Mother — As  a  Christian  Woman  and  a  Pastor's  Helpmeet — She  Still  Lives — 
NVatchingto  Serve  and  Waiting  the  Summons  to  Rest 85 


CONTENTS.  7 

CHAPTER    VII. 

JACOBSTOWN  AND  FREEHOLD. 

At  Work  on  the  Outposts. 
The  Jacobstown  Baptist  Church — Its  Previous  History — Condition  in  182.3 — 
Members  Few  and  Scattered — Mr.  Challiss  Supplies  the  Pulpit — Not 
Sanguine  of  Results — Services  too  Seldom — The  Swallows  Built  their  Nests 
— His  Labors  Blessed — The  Church  Greatly  Increased — Able  to  Support  a 
Pastor — Recollections  of  his  Labors  there — Freehold — The  Baptist  Interest 
there — Discouraging  Prospects — The  Old  Meeting  House — Preaching  under 
Difficulties — The  Prospects  Brighten — Revivalg^ — A  Church  Organized — 
A  Pastor  Settled — Outpost  Labors  largely  Remunerative — The  Laborer 
gratefully  Remembered 113 

CHAPTER    VIII. 

FIRST  PASTORATE  CONTINUED. 

September,  1823— April,  1838. 
The  Young  Pastor  at  Work  at  Home — Cari-ying  the  Gospel  to  the  Destitute — 
A  Gradual  Growth — A  Gracious  Revival — The  Work  Continued — Many 
Gathered  in — Persistent  Labors — God  Blesses  the  Efforts — Called  to  Old 
Middletown — His  People  Object — Their  Voice  Prevails — The  Call  Declined — 
Renewed  Diligence — Call  to  Lower  Dulilin,  Pennsylvania — Providential 
Indications — The  Call  Accepted — General  Review  of  First  Pastorate — 
Summing  \ip  the  Results — Some  Reminiscences — Going  on  Foot — "Too 
Hea^'y  for  Dick" — "  Wake  up  that  Boy" — Conducting  Meetings  at  Outposts 
— Strange  Interruptions — "  Harvest  is  Past  on  This  Side  of  the  Ridge" — 
"  Give  me  My  Chair ;  he  Means  Me" — His  Estimate  of  First  Pastorate — 
Strength  of  First  Impressions — Continued  Love  for  This  People — Frequent 
Revisits— "Aunt  Fanny" — The  Bell — Last  Visit — His  Love  Reciprocated — 
His  Labors  Remembered — Estimate  of  his  Work  by  his  Parishioners,  and 
Successors  in  Office 123 

CHAPTER    IX. 

SECOND  PASTORATE. 

April,  1838— April,  1845. 
The  Old  Pennepeck  Church — Surrounding  Country — First  Settlement — Early 
Growth — Baptist  Colony — Elder  Dungan  and  the  First  Church — Rev.  Elias 


8  CONTENTS. 

Keach — Penuepeck  Church  ConstituttJ — Outposts — Pioneer  Pastors — Suc- 
cessful Labors — Field  Crowded  with  Reminiscences  of  the  Early  Baptists 
of  America — Mr.  Challiss  Called  to  the  Pastorate — Condition  of  the  Church 
in  1838 — Kilters  upon  his  Work  —  Cordial  Greeting  to  Pennsylvania — 
Anxiety  in  Reference  to  the  Field — Thinks  of  the  History  of  the  Church 
and  the  Character  of  his  Predecessors — Trusts  in  God  and  Goes  to  Work — 
Indications  of  Good — Revival  Seasons — Church  Prospering  and  Pastor  En- 
couraged— Trouble  Coming — "  The  Musical  War" — Open  Rupture — A  Long 
Dark  Time — Pastor  Sad  and  Anxious— God  Lifts  the  Cloud — Precious  Revi- 
val— A  Rejoicing  Pastor  and  People — Among  his  Brethren — Resignation 
Offered — Church  Refuses  to  Accept  it — Resignation  Pressed  and  Accepted 
— "  Following  the  Cloud  of  Providence" — Reminiscences  of  Pastorate — The 
Unknown  Inquirer — The  Busy  Farmer — The  Poor  Sermon — The  Confidence 
of  Youth — "The  Ride  and  Second  Sermon" — The  Pastor's  Work  and  Worth 
Remembered — Continued  Interest  in  the  Church — Last  A'isit — Encouraging 
Words 1^^ 

CHAPTER    X. 

THE  DOUBLE  PASTORATE. 

April,  1845— April,  1852. 
Marltou  and  Moorestown  Baptist  Churches— Location— Early  Settlement  of 
this  Section  by  Quakers— Their  Continued  Influence— Baptist  History— 
The  Churches  Constituted— Condition  of  these  Fields  in  1845— Division  of 
■VFork- Disadvantages  of  Double  Work— Doing  What  he  Could— Revival 
Seasons— General  Work— The  Churches  Strengthened— Two  Pastors  Needed 
— Mr.  Challiss  Resigns— His  Fidelity  Attested— Statement  of  Rev.  E.  D. 
Fendall— Pleasant  Remembrances  of  the  Pastor  by  Survivors l.s:i 

CHAPTER    XT. 

LAST  PASTORATE. 

April,  1852— April,  18G0. 
Old  Cohansey  Baptist  Church— Locality  and  Early  History- Aggressive.Spirit 
— Growth  and  Colonies — Churches  Organized — Field  Circumscribed — Con- 
dition of  Church  in  1852 — Mr.  Challiss  Accepts  the  Pastorate — Cordial 
Greeting  to  the  Pastor— Welcomed  back  to  Jersey — His  Desires  and  Expec- 
tations—At Work— Yearly  Meeting— Good  Results— Views  of  a  Visitor- 
Earnest  Efforts  and  Early  Fruits— Jngatlierings — Careful  Guarding  of  the 
Fold— Great  Revival  in  1S57-8— Some  Account  of  the  Work— Largo  Baptism 


COXTENTS.  9 

— lliippy  Diiy  to  Pastor  and  Cliurch — Training  Young  Converts— Developing 
the  Church — Pastoral  Visiting — Thoughts  of  Resigning  the  Pastoral  Work 
— Old  Age  Coming  ou — Generous  Offer  of  Children — Notice  of  Resignation 
— Resigns  his  Charge  and  Retires  from  Pastoral  Work — General  Review — 
A  New  Era — The  Change  Fully  Apprehended — Purposes  of  Future  Labors 
— Statement  of  Rev.  Thomas  G.  Wright  -A  General  Statement  by  Mr. 
Challiss 202 

CHAPTER    XII. 

OUT  OF  THE  PASTORATE -STILL  AT  WORK. 

April,  1860— April,  1SG8. 

Supplying  Old  Cohansey — How  he  Kept  liis  Heart  in  Sympathy  witli  the  V\  ork 
of  the  Ministry — His  Sons  in  the  West — His  Anxiety  for  the  Religious 
Culture  of  the  Field — A  Baptist  Church  in  Atchison,  Kansas — Extracts 
from  Letters — Success  of  the  Enterprise — His  Joy  in  the  Results — Visits 
Kansas — Views  and  Impressions  of  the  Great  West — Reminiscences  of  Visit 
— At  Home  Again — Preaching  at  Millville — Prospects  Not  Flattering — "Too 
Dry  and  Sandy  for  Baptists" — Supplying  Cedarville  and  Canton  Churches 
— At  Work  at  Vineland — The  Place — ^A  Church  Constituted — Pastor  Secured 
—Supplying  Mount  Holly  Baptist  Church— A  Pleasant  Experience— At  the 
Association,  September,  1867 — Convictions  of  Coming  Deatli — Visit  to  Early 
Friends — At  Upper  Freehold  and  Vincentown — Returns  Home — Remains 
at  Home — Gradually  Failing 200 

CHAPTER    XIII. 

DOMESTIC  LIFE. 
Ditficulties  in  Estimating  Domestic  Character — Tlie  Fountain  Concealed  from 
Public  View— Only  the  Streams  Seen — Mr.  Challiss  Loved  Home  and  Home 
Society — Strong  Faith  in  Friends— Dependence  upon  them — No  Conflict 
Allowed — As  a  Husband — Estimate  of  His  Wife — Fondness  of  her  Society 
— Quotations  from  Letters — As  a  Father — Love  for  his  Children — Death  of 
Little  James — Education  of  Children — Efforts  and  Sacrifices — Testimony 
of  Dr.  Challiss — Letters  to  an  Old  Friend — Temporal  Prosperity  of  Children 
— False  Inferences— Faithful  Christian  Father— Letter  to  Children — Joy 
over  their  Conversion — Statement  of  Kev.  E.  D.  Fendall  and  Rev.  L.  A. 
Alderson — Bridgeton  Selected  as  his  Home — Why — Daughter  Removes  to 
Maryland— A  Great  Trial— "My  Poor  Heart  almost  Rebelled" — Experience 
of  the  Family 259 


10  CONTENTS. 

CHAPTEE    XIV. 

IN  PUBLIC  LIFE. 

As  a  Student  Preparing  for  Public  Duties — Influence  of  Early  Habits — Favorite 
Authors — Bible  his  Great  Text  Book — As  a  Preacher— How  Estimated — 
Devoted  to  his  Work — Practical — Happy  in  Choice  of  Texts  and  in  Public 
Prayer — As  Pastor,  Faithful,  Sympathizing,  and  Discriminating — Earnest 
in  Every  Good  Work — Catholic  in  Spirit— A  General  Favorite — A  Good 
Counsellor — Efficient  in  Special  Meetings — Assists  Dr.  Gillette — Labors  at 
Cape  May  —  Honored  by  his  Brethren — Summary  of  Life  Work — Denomina- 
tional Interests — A  Contrajst — Naturally  Conservative — The  Temperance 
Reform— Slavery— Love  of  Country — A  Patriot,  Positive  and  Demonstrative 
— Hopeful  Views  of  Country — Personal  Recollections — By  Rev.  E.  D.  Fendall 
—A.  D.  Gillette,  D.  D.— Rev.  W.  P.  Maul— Rev.  E.  C.  Ambler— Rev.  W.  B. 
Gillette — Dr.  Moore— J.  F.  Brown,  D.  D 278 

CHAPTER    XV. 

PASSING  AWAY. 
The  End  Approaching — Premonitions— Health  and  Strength  Failing— At  the 
Post  of  Duty  till  the  Last — Talk  with  Friend  on  Approaching  Death — 
Adjusts  his  Worldly  Affairs — Awaiting  the  Summons — Last  Letters  to  his 
Sons  —  Disease  Fluctuating  —  Devotional  Feelings  —  Favorite  Hymns  — 
Maturing  for  Heaven — Tender  Concern  for  Loved  Ones— Taken  to  his  Bed 
Again — Children  Summoned — Luther's  Arrival — The  Father  and  Son — 
Luther's  Account — Desire  to  See  his  First  Born — Joseph  Comes  too  Late — 
Dying  Experience  and  Testimony — Triumphant  in  Christ — Falls  Asleep  in 
Jesus — The  Family  Gathered  in  Sorrow — Coming  of  Old  Friends — The  Little 
Quaker  Girl  and  the  Christian  Matron — Bowed  at  the  Mercy  Se<it 327 

CHAPTEE    XVI. 

IN  MEMORY  OF  THE  DEPARTED. 

Tributes  to  his  Memory — General  Expressions  of  Sorrow — Allusions  to  his  Death 
by  the  Secular  Press — Preparations  for  Funeral — Funeral  Services — Last 
View  of  the  Departed — Resting  Place  of  the  Dust — Memorial  Stone — 
Proffered  Tributes — Tlie  Secular  Press — Resolutions  from  the  Slount  Holly 
and  Bridgeton  Chiu'ches — Resolutions  and  Proceedings  of  Religious  Bodies 
— Individual  Tributes — Letter  from  Venei'able  Rev.  J.  E.  Welch,  D.  D.,  of 
Missouri — The  Garland  Laid  upon  his  Grave  — Hope  and  Joy  in  Reference 
to  the  Departed 350 


PREFACE 


SOON  after  the  death  of  Rev.  James  M. 
CiiALLiss,  his  son,  Mr.  Luther  C.  Challiss, 
with  the  concurrence  of  the  other  members  of 
the  family,  decided  to  publish  a  volume  which 
should  gather  up  and  perpetuate  something  of 
the  history  of  his  father's  life  and  labors. 

This  decision  was  prompted  by  the  ajOfection 
of  a  devoted  son  for  a  father  whose  worth  was 
deeply  appreciated  by  his  family  and  personal 
friends,  and  whose  labors  had  been  so  abundant 
and  successful  in  the  different  fields  where  he 
had  served  as  pastor.  Many  who  had  enjoyed 
his  ministry  in  the  different  churches  which  he 
served,  joined  in  a  request  for  such  a  memorial 
volume  of  this  faithful  Christian  man  and  de- 
voted pastor. 

At  the  request  of  the  family,  the  author 
consented  to  prepare  the  work.  The  material 
placed  in  his  hands  was  general  and  limited. 

11 


12  PREFACE. 

Mr.  Challiss  kept  no  diary;  but  a  few  years 
before  his  death  he  wrote  a  general  summary 
of  his  life,  clustering  together  on  a  few  pages, 
the  leading  facts  of  a  somewhat  eventful  life  of 
seventy  years.  This  summary,  and  a  large 
number  of  letters,  principally  addressed  to  his 
sons  and  other  members  of  the  family,  and  also 
a  number  of  miscellaneous  papers,  were  placed 
in  the  hands  of  the  author  in  a  few  days  after 
the  funeral  of  Mr.  Challiss. 

This  material  has  been  increased  and  certified 
by  reference  to  records  of  the  churches  he  served 
and  other  religious  bodies  with  which  he  was 
connected ;  by  extended  correspondence  with 
his  old  friends,  and  others,  both  in  this  coun- 
try and  in  England ;  by  personal  visits  to  the 
different  fields  occupied  by  him,  and  by  the 
author's  intimate  personal  acquaintance  w^ith 
the  deceased  for  nearly  twenty-five  years. 

Knowing  that  biographies,  even  of  the  best 
and  most  noted  men,  command  but  a  limited 
circulation,  and  not  designing  this  work  for  the 
general  market,  it  was  agreed  that  it  should  be 
prepared  from  that  stand-point  which  would 
give  it  the  greatest  interest  to  those  for  whom 
it  is  especially  intended — the  family,  personal 
friends,  and  old  parishioners  of  the  deceased. 
To  add  some  local  interest  to  the  work,  and 


PREFACE.  13 

also  to  afford  a  better  appreciation  of  the  labors 
of  Mr.  Clialliss  in  the  different  fields  occupied 
by  him,  quite  a  full  historical  notice  has  been 
given  of  the  churches  which  were  under  his 
pastoral  care,  especially  of  the  old  churches  he 
so  faithfully  served. 

The  publication  of  the  volume  has  been  de- 
layed, partly  because  of  the  friigmentary  con- 
dition of  the  gathered  material  and  the  many 
sources  from  which  it  was  necessary  to  gather 
it;  but  chiefly  because  of  the  pressure  of  pro- 
fessional duties. 

During  the  preparation  of  the  work,  the  old 
church,  of  which  the  author  is  pastor,  has  en- 
joyed a  very  gracious  and  extended  revival — 
unequaled  by  any  previous  revival  in  this 
church  during  a  history  of  more  than  one  hun- 
dred years — and  seldom  equaled,  in  its  power 
and  extent,  in  the  history  of  any  church. 

The  book  has  been  written  amidst  the  pres- 
sure of  duties  as  pastor  of  a  large  church,  and 
these  duties  increased  by  this  special  work  of 
grace. 

The  author  would  gratefully  acknowledge 
his  indebtedness  to  the  many  friends  who  have 
so  kindly  responded  to  his  questions  and  letters 
(.)f  inquiry,  and  whose  contributions  and  per- 
sonal recollections   o-ive  interest  to  the  work. 


14  PREFACE. 

Nor  can  he  fail  to  notice  the  very  generous 
provision  made  by  Mr.  Luther  C.  Challiss 
for  the  preparation  and  sending  forth  of  this 
memorial  of  his  honored  father. 

Mr.  Challiss  defrays  all  the  expense  involved 
in  the  publication  of  the  work,  and  will  then 
assign  to  the  different  churches  his  father 
served,  about  the  number  of  copies  that  can  be 
disposed  of  by  them,  leaving  them  to  use,  ac- 
cording to  their  own  choice,  all  the  proceeds 
for  some  object  of  interest  to  themselves,  so 
that  the  entire  proceeds  from  the  sale  of  the 
work  shall  go  to  objects  of  benevolence. 

The  author  has  experienced  real  pleasure  in 
foUowino;  the  life  and  labors  of  one  so  unassum- 
ing,  yet  so  useful ;  and  it  is  sincerely  desired 
that  no  imperfections  of  his  work  will  be  al- 
lowed to  mar  the  beauty  of  a  life  thus  devoted 
to  Christ,  or  in  any  wise  hinder  the  mission  of 
such  a  man's  memory. 

JOHN  R.  MURPHY. 

Salem,  N.  J.,  May  18,  1870. 


Rev.  James  M.  Challiss. 


CHAPTER  I. 

ANCESTRAL   HISTORY. — ITS   MOULDING    INFLUENCE. 

The  living  stream,  wliose  hoalthfnl  tide 
With  life  and  joy  the  vale  supplied, 

While  hastening  on  its  way. 
Deep  beneath  some  mountaia  slide, 
A  mighty  mass  and  spreading  wide, 

Is  huried  up  to-day. 
But  living  streams  of  hidden  power, 
W  hose  tlow  is  checked  the  passing  hour. 

Impatient  of  delay ; 
Still  gather  strength  where  mountains  tower, 
Increased  by  each  restraining  hour, 

To  force  their  onward  way. 
So  mid  the  gloom  of  error's  night 
God's  own  truth — that  blessed  light — 

Has  oft  been  lost  from  view ; 
But  living  truths  that  come  from  God, 
Despite  oppression,  tears,  and  blood. 

Their  onward  way  pursue. 

rriHE  Seine  flows    on  more  majestically  after  re- 
A    ceiving  the  dead  bodies  of  the  heretics." 
Such  was  the  message  sent  to  Pope  Gregory  XIII. 
by  Charles  IX.,  immediately  after  the  massacre  of  St. 
Bartholomew.    While  the  dying  groans  of  thousands 
of  his  betrayed  and  butchered  subjects  were  yet  linger- 
ing in  his  ears,  this  base-hearted  man  hastened  off  a 
special  messenger  to  Rome  to  rejjeat  these  cruel  words 
2  16 


1(3  REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS. 

to  the  Pope,  with  the  exultant  assurance  that  the 
Protestants  were  extirpated  from  France. 

"This  intelligence  filled  all  Rome  with  the  wildest 
joy.  The  'Te  Deum'  was  sung,  and  the  firing  of 
cannons  and  special  heralds  announced  the  welcome 
news  to  all  the  region  around.  The  Pope  and  Cardi- 
nals joined  in  procession,  to  return  solemn  thanks  to 
God  for  the  extirpation  of  the  heretics.  The  massacre 
was  extolled  as  the  triumph  of  the  Church.  Medals 
were  struck  off  as  triumphant  memorials  of  the  event, 
and  the  day  which  witnessed  this  most  wicked  deed 
of  blood  was  designated  as,  'The  celebrated  day  of  St. 
Bartholomew,  most  cheering  to  the  Catholics.'" 

The  Huguenots,  or  French  Protestants,  had  been 
struggling  for  many  years,  to  maintain  the  truths  of 
the  Bible  as  they  understood  them,  against  the  gross 
errors  of  Romanism.  This  long  conflict  had  often  led 
them  through  scenes  of  fearful  suifering.  Years  of 
oppression,  of  imprisonment  and  relentless  persecu- 
tions, of  terrible  tortures  and  martyrdom,  had  fairly 
tested  their  integrity.  The  arm  of  civil  power  was 
often  aided  by  priestly  intrigues,  and  these  combined 
agencies  were  working  assiduously  against  them,  and 
ever  seeking  their  destruction.  Sometimes  the  Hu- 
guenots were  encouraged  by  partial  success  or  limited 
concession    or    cessation    of   active    [)ersecutions  from 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  17 

their  enemies.  But  often  the  days  of  seeming  pros- 
]>erity  and  large  increase,  were  only  preludes  of  disap- 
pointment and  defeat  and  terrible  disaster.  Often  in 
these  days  of  promise,  designing  men,  more  from  polit- 
ical aspirations  than  from  religious  principle,  joined 
their  ranks,  and  greatly  swelled  their  numbers;  and 
often  the  Huguenots  were  beguiled  by  unwise  or 
designing  leaders  into  political  alliances  and  party 
conflicts.  Often,  too,  they  were  betrayed  by  the 
perfidy  of  secret  enemies  or  avowed  friends.  But 
they  were  always  hated  and  persecuted  by  the 
Catholic  party,  and  generally  oppressed  by  the  civil 
power.  It  is  a  marvel,  explained  only  by  the  power 
of  God's  grace,  that  men  should  so  long  endure  so 
much  suffering,  yet  remain  so  inflexible  to  the  truth. 

The  art  of  printing  scattered  Bibles  through  the 
land,  and  gave  great  and  ready  diffusion  to  religious 
truths.  "  Printing,"  said  Luther,  "  is  the  latest  and 
greatest  gift  by  which  God  enables  us  to  advance  the 
things  of  the  gospel."  The  printed  Bible  did  much 
in  adding  converts  to  these  persecuted  Huguenots,  and 
in  strengthening  them  to  maintain  their  conflict  with 
the  errors  and  powers  of  Popery.  The  reading  and 
study  of  God's  word  made  them  more  earnest-hearted 
and  hopeful  in  their  faith,  and  more  determined  and 
valiant  for  the  truth.  With  the  Bible  in  their  hands 
and  its  promises  accepted  as,  "  Yea  and  amen  in  Christ 


18  REV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

Jesus,"  these  persecuted  ones  encouraged  each  other  in 
their  sufferings  for  Christ,  and  recognized  their  afflic- 
tions as,  "  working  out  for  them  a  far  more  exceeding 
and  eternal  weight  of  glory."  Thus  they  were  held 
nearer  to  the  duties  of  a  pure  religious  life ;  guarded 
against  the  excesses  of  formalism,  superstition,  and  the 
general  impiety  of  the  age;  and  strengthened  to  en- 
dure the  severe  persecutions  which  they  encountered 
from  the  enemies  of  a  pure  religion,  because  of  their 
unyielding  faith  in  simple  Bible  truth. 

Their  pure  faith  and  blameless  lives,  their  loving 
spirit,  their  peaceable,  well-disposed  conduct,  and  in- 
dustrious habits  gained  them  many  admirers  and 
adherents,  and  should  have  commanded  the  respect 
and  commendation  even  of  their  enemies.  But  the 
leading  spirits  of  the  Roman  Catholic  Church,  could 
never  brook  the  advancing  influence  and  increasing 
numbers  of  the  Huguenots.  Especially  as  their  in- 
crease gave  them  political  influence  even  without  polit- 
ical assumption.  Resting  upon  the  dogma  that,  "  The 
Church  possesses  the  right  to  extirpate  heresy  and  ex- 
terminate heretics,"  the  Catholics  waged  incessant 
warfare  against  the  Huguenots.  No  means  were  too 
dishonorable,  no  intrigue  too  treacherous,  and  no  tor- 
ture too  diabolical,  in  their  work  of  persecution.  The 
highest  applause  of  men  and  the  full  remission  of  all 
sin   were    freely    proffered  to    those    engaged    in    this 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  19 

crusade  of  death.  Early  and  often  was  the  secular 
authority  invoked  against  these  heretics,  to  stay  their 
progress  and  to  suppress  this  heresy.  The  secular 
arm  was  too  ready  to  join  in  this  crusade.  Edicts 
against  heretics  were  easily  obtained.  Heresy  was 
declared  a  crime  punishable  with  death,  and  judges 
were  forbidden  to  remit  or  even  mitigate  the  penalty. 

Great  suffering  followed  these  edicts.  The  villages 
of  the  Huguenots  were  razed,  and  their  country  laid 
waste.  Congregations  were  dispersed,  and  their  meet- 
ing-houses pulled  down  or  burnt.  The  worshipers 
were  arrested  and  hurried  off  to  prisons.  Many  of 
them  were  tortured  to  death,  and  their  mangled  bodies 
burnt.  Thousands  upon  thousands  perished.  No  age 
or  sex  or  condition  was  respected.  So  general  was 
this  work  of  torture  and  death,  that  annual  processions 
were  instituted  to  give  thanks  to  God  for  the  destruc- 
tion of  the  heretics.  Kings  encouraged  the  murder- 
ous zeal  of  the  persecutors,  and  walked  bare-headed  in 
the  processions  of  priests  and  monks  to  witness  the 
burning  of  the  condemned  Protestants. 

Sometimes,  the  divided  council  of  the  enemies  of 
religion,  or  their  exhausted  efforts  gave  transient  relief 
to  the  sufferers,  and  the  lull  of  persecution  afforded 
opportunity  to  fill  up  their  decimated  ranks.  But  the 
fires  which  smouldered  for  a  season  would  soon  burst 

forth  again  with  increased  fury.     Gigantic  measures 

2* 


20  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

were  devised  again  aud  again  to  rid  the  land  of  these 
persistent  heretics.  Terrible  suiferings  would  follow 
these  new  edicts.  A  mighty  flow  of  martyr  blood 
would  mark  the  footsteps  of  the  persecutors  all  over 
the  land.  Deep  moans  of  sorrow  from  the  fatherless 
and  the  childless  might  be  heard  in  every  city,  every 
village,  and  every  valley.  ]Men  and  women,  less 
moved  to  suffering  for  the  truth,  and  less  fortified  for 
that  suifering  by  the  truths  of  the  Bible,  and  by  the 
grace  of  the  God  of  the  Bible,  Avould  have  yielded  to 
this  continual  pressure  of  opposition,  torture,  and 
death. 

At  length  the  great  tragic  act  for  the  fearful  and 
complete  extirpation  of  the  French  Protestants  had 
been  determined  on.  The  infamous  Catharine  De 
Medicis,  and  her  weak  and  bigoted  son,  Charles  IX., 
are  entitled  to  the  credit  of  arranging  and  carrying 
out,  if  not  of  instigating,  the  wholesale  slaughter  of 
the  massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew. 

A  temporary  suspension  of  persecution  and  an  assu- 
rance of  toleration  throughout  France  had  completely 
removed  the  fears  of  the  Huguenots.  With  profes- 
sions of  friendship  and  great  proffers  of  hospitality, 
many  of  their  leaders  and  principal  families  had  been 
lured  to  Paris,  to  join  in  the  festivities  connected  with 
the  marriage  of  the  king's  sister,  and  to  grace  the 
royal  nuptials  by  their  presence;  and  now,  while  rest- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  21 

ing  in  supposed  security,  under  the  sacred  pledge  of 
liospitalitj,  at  the  midnight  hour,  the  tocsin  tolled  the 
signal  of  slaughter.  The  appointed  assassins  rushed 
forth  by  royal  command  to  their  work  of  blood  and 
death.  Men,  women,  and  children,  residents  and 
strangers,  alike  fell  victims  to  this  well-planned  mas- 
sacre. The  whole  city  was  one  great  slaughter-house, 
and  flowed  with  hviman  blood.  The  bodies  of  the 
slain,  all  exposed  and  mutilated,  blocked  up  the  door- 
ways, and  lay  in  every  lane  and  passage  of  the  city. 
They  were  heaped  up  in  the  courts  of  the  palace,  and 
multitudes  were  cast  into  the  Seine,  then  swollen  with 
a  flood.  All  over  France  similar  deeds  of  blood  were 
enacted,  and  probably  not  less  than  one  hundred  thou- 
sand perished  in  this  one  general  slaughter.  Among 
these  were  many  of  the  noblest  sons  and  daughters  of 
France,  some  of  her  profoundest  philosophers,  and 
very  many  of  her  most  skillful  and  industrious  arti- 
sans. 

Yet  all  this  was  planned  and  executed  under  the 
guise  of  religion  and  in  the  interest  of  the  Catholics, 
and  was  claimed  by  them  as  a  glorious  victory  ob- 
tained by  their  Church  over  heresy.  Rome  and  papal 
France  and  Spain  were  wild  with  joy  and  exultation 
over  this  grand  extermination  of  heretics. 

But  in  vain  all  this  efliision  of  blood,  and  these 
shouts  of  victory,  and  exultant  predictions.     All  these 


22  HEV.  JAMES  M.   ClIALLISS. 

gigantic  efforts,  and  the  sufferings  and  death  induced, 
did  little  more  to  check  the  onward  flow  of  truth  than 
did  the  bodies  of  the  heretics  the  flow  of  the  swollen 
Seine.  Protestants  were  not  exterminated.  God's 
truth  was  not  crushed  out.  Heresy  to  Rome  still  ex- 
isted, even  in  France.  The  Huguenots  remained  a 
power,  perhaps  with  fewer  political  aspirations,  but 
more  true  godliness. 

The  spirit  of  the  Protestants  of  that  age  is  well 
exhibited  by  the  conduct  and  language  of  Bernard 
Palissy,  in  early  life  a  wandering  artisan,  but  a  man 
of  true  genius,  and  afterwards  the  philosopher,  the 
geologist,  the  chemist,  and  artist,  but  more  generally 
known  as  the  great  potter  of  France.  At  about  the 
age  of  thirty  he  became  a  follower  of  Christ,  and  a 
believer  in  the  religion  of  an  open  Bible.  It  was  a 
time  when  the  fires  of  persecution  were  raging  hottest. 
Printing  had  been  suppressed  by  a  royal  edict,  the 
reading  of  the  Bible  was  prohibited  under  penalty  of 
death,  and  many  were  suffering  this  penalty  by  fire. 
But  Palissy  did  not  conceal  his  sympathy  with  Protes- 
tants, nor  hold  his  peace  as  a  preacher  of  the  doctrines 
of  the  Reformation.  He  was  arrested,  and  doubtless 
would  have  been  condemned  and  burnt  as  a  heretic, 
but  his  great  genius  was  needed  to  minister  to  the 
comforts  and  pride  of  royalty.  So  he  was  permitted 
to  live  on  in  comparative  security.     But  at  length,  in 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  23 

the  seventy-eighth  year  of  his  age,  lie  was  arrested  as  a 
heretic,  and  imprisoned  in  the  Bastile.  His  enemies 
required,  that  he  shoukl  recant  or  be  publicly  burnt. 
It  is  said  that  Henry  III.  visited  him  in  person  to 
induce  him  to  abjure  his  faith. 

"My  good  man,"  said  the  king,  "you  have  now 
served  my  mother  and  myself  for  forty-five  years.  We 
have  put  up  with  your  adhering  to  your  religion  amid 
fires  and  massacres.  But  now  I  am  constrained  to 
leave  you  in  the  hands  of  your  enemies,  and  to-mor- 
row you  will  be  burnt  unless  you  become  converted." 

"Sire,"  answered  the  unconquerable  old  man,  "I 
am  ready  to  give  my  life  for  the  glory  of  God.  You 
and  those  who  constrain  you,  and  all  your  people  can 
never  constrain  me,  for  I  know  how  to  die." 

And  die  he  did,  shut  up  in  the  Bastile,  rejoicing 
that  he  was  able  to  lay  down   his  life  for  his  faith. 

Thus  with  persistent  faith,  pure  life,  and  heroic  en- 
durance, did  the  men  and  women  of  that  age  maintain 
the  truths  of  the  gospel,  through  many  long  years 
of  oppression,  suffering,  and  death.  The  great  clouds 
of  sorrow  that  hovered  over  them,  and  the  seas  of 
blood  which  threatened  to  engulf  them,  alike  failed  to 
put  out  or  even  darken  the  lamp  of  light  they  held 
up  to  the  world. 

More  than  one  hundred  years  after  papal  exulta- 
tions over  the  extermination  of  the  Protestants  by  the 


24  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

massacre  of  St.  Bartholomew,  another  infamous  woman 
of  France,  a  distinguished  and  influential  courtesan,  of 
Louis  XIV.,  wrote  to  one  of  her  friends,  "  If  God 
spares  the  king,  there  will  not  be  a  single  Huguenot 
in  twenty  years."  The  work  of  extermination  was 
fearfully  commenced.  A  few  months  later  this  same 
woman  wrote :  "  The  king  begins  to  think  seriously 
of  his  salvation,  and  of  that  of  his  subjects.  If  God 
spares  him,  there  will  be  only  one  religion  in  his 
kingdom." 

The  king  lived  more  than  thirty  years,  yet  this 
work  was  not  accomplished.  His  infatuation  and  zeal 
in  persecuting  his  own  most  desirable  subjects,  justified 
the  predictions  of  Madame  de  Maintenon,  but  there 
was  a  power  behind  the  throne  giving  direction  in  this 
conflict ;  and  while  France  robbed  herself  of  multi- 
tudes of  her  best  artisans,  and  many  of  her  noblest 
philosophers,  and  hundreds  of  thousands  of  her  best 
citizens,  God  opened  doors  for  these  exiles  in  other 
lands,  and  through  them  other  lands  became  enriched, 
not  only  with  material  wealth,  but  with  moral  power 
and  spiritual  life.  The  Huguenots  were  scattered, 
not  exterminated.  Their  influence  and  power  as 
Christians  were  disseminated,  not  crushed  out.  All 
that  cruel  laws  and  Jesuitical  intrigue  could  do  for 
their  extirpation  was  fully  done.  The  king  directed 
his  minister  to  write  to  the  governors  of  the  provinces 


liEV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  25 

that,  "  He  will  not  suifer  any  persons  in  his  kingdom 
but  those  of  his  own  religion."  Orders  were  issued 
that  Protestantism  must  cease  to  exist,  and  that 
Huguenots  must  everywhere  conform  to  the  royal  will, 
and  edicts  were  accordingly  published  with  the  design 
of  carrying  the  king's  purposes  into  effect. 

The  edict  of  Nantes  was  revoked.  This  celebrated 
edict  was  signed  by  Henry  IV.,  April  3d,  1598.  It 
was  violently  resisted  by  the  Catholics  because  it  con- 
ceded too  much  to  the  Protestants.  It  was  received 
with  great  hesitancy  by  Protestants,  because  it  granted 
them  so  little  of  what  they  regarded  as  inalienable 
rights.  But  it  seemed  to  be  finally  accepted  by  both 
parties  as  conceding  no  more,  and  granting  as  much 
as  the  time  and  circumstances  would  warrant. 

By  this  edict  Protestants  were  allowed  the  most 
am})le  liberty  of  conscience,  but  were  restricted  in  the 
public  exercise  of  their  religion  to  certain  localities. 
Their  social  and  civil  rights  and  privileges  were  in 
the  main  conceded.  The  provisions  of  this  act  had 
often  been  grossly  violated  by  the  Catholics,  but  so 
long  as  it  remained  a  law,  the  Protestants  felt  that 
they  had  some  legally  conceded  rights  and  some 
ground  for  civil  redress.  But  when  the  "Act  of  Re- 
vocation "  Avas  published  their  last  hope  of  justice  to 
themselves  or  restraint  uj^on  their  enemies  was  blotted 
out,  and  they  were  left  in  the  merciless  hands  of  foes, 


26  REV.  JAMES  M.   C  HAL  LIS  S. 

strong  in   power,  unscrnpulous   in  tlieir  intrigues,  and 
cruel  even  in  their  tender  mercies. 

Now  these  poor  Protestants  were  exposed  to  all 
kinds  of  influences,  and  sufferings  and  death,  to  com- 
pel them  to  abjure  tlieir  faith  and  become  Catholics — 
bribes,  large  and  tempting,  were  freely  offered  ;  and 
when  these  were  spurned,  their  property  was  confis- 
cated. Their  children  were  denied  education,  except 
under  Catholic  guidance.  They  were  alienated  from 
their  homes  by  guile  or  carried  off  by  force.  Multi- 
tudes were  cruelly  torn  from  their  parents  and  carried 
into  remote  provinces,  to  be  subject  to  Catholic 
training.  The  terrible  system  of  Dragounades  was 
adopted.  The  scenes  of  brutal  outrage  and  fiend- 
ish torture,  which  occurred  in  connection  with  these 
can  never  be  described.  Companies  of  soldiers,  of  the 
roughest,  most  cruel  of  men,  were  quartered  on  Prot- 
estant families,  with  the  right  to  invade  every  privacy 
and  to  gratify  every  lust.  The  dragoons  entered  the 
houses  of  Protestants  with  drawn  swords,  shouting, 
"  Kill,  kill,  or  become  Catholics."  Many,  to  escape 
their  tormentors,  fled  from  their  homes  to  the  woods, 
to  the  wilderness  and  caverns  of  the  mountains.  But 
they  were  pursued  like  wild  beasts,  killed  or  driven 
back  to  their  homes,  and  compelled  to  feed  and  lodge 
their  persecutors,  and  to  endure  outrage  and  torture 
worse  than  death.     In  a  word,  these  poor  Huguenots 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  27 

were  insulted,  trodden  under  foot,  fined,  robbed, 
flogged,  outraged,  sabered,  hanged,  and  burnt.  Every 
merciless  cruelty  was  heaped  upon  them  that  the  in- 
genuity and  malignity  of  inquisitors  could  devise. 

"They  sat  and  planned 
Deliberately,  and  with  most  musing  pains, 
How  to  extremest  thrill  of  agony. 
The  flesh  and  blood  and  souls  of  holy  men. 
Their  victims,  might  be  wrought,  and  when  they  saw 
New  tortures  of  their  laboring  fancy  born, 
They  leaped  for  joy,  and  made  great  haste  to  try 
Their  force — well  pleased  to  hear  a  deeper  groan." 

Thousands  were  slaughtered  outright ;  thousands 
had  their  lives  worried  and  tortured  out  of  them ; 
thousands  more  were  left  to  starve  and  j^iue  away  in 
prisons;  and  thousands  were  sent  to  toil  and  die  in  the 
galleys.  Yet  there  was  no  cessation  of  this  war  of 
suffering  and  death,  which  was  waged  against  de- 
fenceless men,  women,  and  children  all  over  France. 
These  persecutions  were  without  excuse — they  were 
ferocious  and  barbarous,  and  shroud  the  name  of 
Louis  XIV.  with  the  blackest  infamy. 

No  wonder  that  hundreds  of  thousands  sought  de- 
liverance in  exile  from  their  homes  and  country. 
Flight  or  conversion  to  Catholicism  was  the  only  re- 
lief for  them.  They  were  Protestants  from  conviction, 
and  with  most,  all  the  influences  and  powers  which 
their  enemies  mustered  could  not  lead  them  away 
from  the  path  which  the  Bible  pointed  out.  They 
persistently  refused  to  be  converted.     They  could  not 


28  ^EV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

become  Catholics.  "Nor  could  they  act  the  terrible 
lie  to  God,  and  seek  their  personal  safety  at  the  price 
of  hypocrisy."  They  chose  rather  to  die.  Flight 
was  their  only  relief.  It  was  a  sad  relief, — to  tear 
themselves  away  from  their  own  vine-clad  hills  and 
beautiful  valleys, — from  the  homes  of  their  childhood 
and  the  graves  of  their  fathers,  and  go,  they  knew  not 
where.     But  it  was  this  or  death. 

Often  before  had  persecution  sent  many  Protest- 
ants of  France  into  exile.  But  never  had  there  been 
such  a  mighty  wave  of  emigration  as  now  rolled  out 
from  the  borders,  on  all  sides,  over  mountains  and 
seas.  Despite  Louis'  vigilant  guards,  and  his  severe 
penalties  against  emigration,  the  living  tide  flowed  on. 
Old  men  and  women,  strong  men,  and  mothers  with 
their  infants,  young  men  and  maidens  joined  the 
throng,  endured  the  fatigue,  risked  the  penalties,  and 
hastened  into  foreign  lands,  to  find  unknown  homes 
among  strangers,  and  people  of  strange  tongue,  rather 
than  violate  their  consciences  as  enlightened  by  the 
Bible. 

Very  few  of  these  exiles  ever  returned  to  their  own 
country.  Persecutions  continued  from  generation  to 
generation,  ever  and  anon  breaking  out  with  new 
fury.  But  the  Huguenots  were  not  exterjuinated 
even  in  France.  Though  terribly  persecuted,  greatly 
scattered,  and  rigidly  proscribed,  yet  despite  their  suf- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  29 

ferings  and  the  exultation  of  their  foes,  they  lived  on, 
and  the  great  truths  they  held  were  the  more  precious 
because  of  the  fearful  penalties  under  which  they  were 
held.  Men  may  be  sacrificed  for  the  truth,  and  kings 
may  force  their  best  subjects  into  exile,  but  the  truth 
goes  not  out  with  the  generation  that  upheld  it. 
Truth  never  dies.  It  cannot  be  exiled.  Its  vital 
forces  do  not  succumb,  either  to  the  arm  of  civil 
power  or  the  intrigues  of  designing  men. 

It  is  true  that  the  policy  of  Louis  XIV.  succeeded 
as  far  as  such  projects  can  succeed.  France  seemed 
converted,  and  the  Jesuits  triumphant.  But  this  was 
only  a  seeming  and  empty  triumph.  Now  the  great 
and  wise  and  good  'men  of  France  lived  only  in  the 
past.  Her  best  artisans  were  in  exile.  Her  commer- 
cial and  manufacturing  interests  were  greatly  embar- 
rassed. Many  villages  were  almost  depopulated,  and 
there  was  a  general  prostration  of  the  .material  inter- 
ests of  the  entire  kingdom.  There  was  even  a  greater 
loss  of  moral  power.  Excesses  of  cruelty  induced 
profligacy.  With  this  there  came,  by  slow  but  sure 
approaches,  distrust  and  disregard  of  all  forms  of  re- 
ligion. Then  infidelity  came  in  like  a  mighty  flood, 
delugins:  the  entire  land.  Men  rushed  on  with  blind 
and  mad  enthusiasm,  overleaping  all  the  restraints  of 
religion  or  reason,  till  "The  Reign  of  Terror"  in  1793 
seemed  like  a  retribution  to  the  Catholics  for  their 


30  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

reign  of  persecution  in  former  centuries.  As  in  these 
centuries  the  persecuted  Protestants  fled  from  the  in- 
tolerance of  those  in  civil  and  ecclesiastical  power ;  so, 
in  1793,  priests  and  potentates  fled  before  an  in- 
furiated, infidel  mob,  not  a  few  falling  victims  to  a 
spirit  of  madness  and  slaughter  which  their  own 
cruelty  to  others  had  induced. 

While  France  suffered  great  loss  by  her  persecu- 
tions God  so  made  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  hira 
that  the  truth  was  advanced  and  the  world  received 
great  gain.  These  exiles  carried  Avith  them,  not  only 
their  literary  acquirements,  their  mechanical  skill,  and 
habits  of  industry,  but  also  their  unconquerable  devo- 
tion to  the  principles  of  their  faith  and  their  earnest 
love  for  the  word  of  God.  Thus  the  lands  which 
gave  them  refuge  were  blessed  by  their  coming. 
Their  scattering  among  the  nations  strengthened  the 
struggling  Protestants  there,  and  aided  in  the  dissemi- 
nation of  truth.  In  England,  especially,  was  their  in- 
fluence good  and  their  assistance  of  great  importance, 
not  only  in  the  impetus  they  gave  to  literature  and 
the  mechanical  and  manufacturing  interests  of  the 
nation,  but  in  the  aid  rendered  in  maintaining  the 
Protestant  faith  against  the  usurpations  of  the  Catho- 
lic party,  and  the  efforts  of  neighboring  Catholic 
sovereigns  to  make  England  a  Catholic  power.  Great 
numbers  of  them  joined  the  army  of  William,  Prince 


REV.  JAMES  31.    CHALLISS.  31 

of  Orange,  and  rendered  valuable  service  in  resisting 
and  defeating  James  II.  and  his  allies,  and  in  placing 
a  Protestant  sovereign  upon  the  throne  of  England. 
But  for  the  aid  of  these  exiled  Huguenots  the  conflict 
would  have  been  greatly  prolonged  and  the  results 
doubtful.  Their  own  experience  in  sufferings  gave 
zest  to  their  valor  and  strength  to  their  arm.  They 
were  more  than  a  match  for  the  Catholic  allies  whom 
Louis  XIV.  furnished  James  II.  to  aid  hira  in  sub- 
duing the  Protestants  of  England.  Thus  England 
was  delivered  from  the  reign  of  a  Catholic  king  and 
saved  from  papal  cruelties. 

The  history  and  conflicts  of  the  Huguenots  have 
been  dwelt  upon  thus  at  length,  not  only  because  the 
paternal  ancestors  of  the  subject  of  this  memoir  were 
found  among  these  sturdy  men,  but  also  because  their 
earnest  life  and  fidelity  to  truth  had  no  little  influence 
(m  the  extension  of  that  Evangelical  religion  of  which 
he  was  a  faithful  preacher  for  nearly  a  half-century. 

The  moral  influence  of  such  a  history  cannot  be 
lost.  It  travels  down  the  j)athway  of  time,  and  shapes 
the  destinies  of  nations.  It  lends  strength  to  truth  in 
its  conflicts  with  error,  and  gives  assurance  that  truth 
shall  gain  the  victory  at  last.  The  example  of  such 
men  lives  when  they  are  dead,  and  future  generations 
are  moulded  by  them.  The  influence  of  their  exam- 
ple may  not  be  recognized,  yet  their  toils  and  endu- 
3* 


32  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLI&S. 

ranee  and  inflexible  adherence  to  principle  often  give 
character  to  their  descendants  for  many  generations. 
The  great  events  of  any  period  are  not  simply  the 
ebnllitions  of  the  moment,  bnt  often  have  their  springs 
far  back  in  the  history  of  the  past.  So  the  character 
of  the  men  in  one  generation  is  indebted  in  no  small 
degree  to  the  example  of  the  men  of  former  ages. 
How  much  the  subject  of  this  memoir  was  influenced 
by  the  history  of  his  ancestors  we  cannot  tell.  But 
the  positiveness  of  his  character,  the  simplicity  of  his 
faith  in  God,  his  inflexible  adherence  to  Bible  truths, 
and  the  fidelity  of  his  Christian  life  certainly  exhi- 
bited a  spirit  like  theirs. 


CHAPTER  II 


PARENTAGE   AND   FAMILY. 


THE  paternal  ancestors  of  Rev.  James  M.  Challiss 
were  Hnguenots,  educated  for  centuries  amid  the 
conflicts  of  truth  with  error,  and  often  amid  scenes  of 
sufferings  and  death,  endured  for  righteousness'  sake. 
What  part  they  personally  acted  in  the  great  events 
of  these  long  conflicts;  how  much  they  personally 
endured  during  the  bloody  scenes  through  which  they 
were  called  to  pass,  and  how  many  of  them  sealed 
their  fidelity  to  their  faith  in  God  by  martyrdom,  are 
the  unrecorded  particulars  of  past  history,  which  cannot 
now  be  gathered  up.  But  it  is  well  known  that  rather 
tlian  be  false  to  their  convictions  of  Bible  truth,  they 
l)ecame  exiles  from  the  beautiful  valleys  and  vine-clad 
hills  of  their  native  land;  they  forsook  the  comforts 
and  hallowed  associations  of  their  homes  and  the 
homes  of  their  fathers,  and  submitted  to  the  hardships 
of  emigration,  uncertain  of  finding  a  home,  and  the 
comforts  or  even   the   necessities  of  life  in  a   foreign 

land.     They  were  equal  to  any  emergency,  and  would 

3.3 


34  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

not  be  recreant  to  their  principles  or  act  the  coward's 
part.  They  were  inflexible  in  their  faith  and  un- 
daunted in  their  sufferings,  "Choosing  rather  to  suffer 
affliction  with  the  people  of  God,  than  to  enjoy  the 
pleasures  of  sin  for  a  season ;  esteeming  the  reproach 
of  Christ  greater  riches  than  the  treasures  of  Egypt." 

During  some  great  exodus  of  the  Huguenots,  proba- 
bly about  the  middle  of  the  Seventeenth  Century,  they 
fled  from  their  homes  in  the  South  of  France  and 
finally  settled  in  Essex,  the  great  agricultural  country 
of  England.  "Whether  this  location  was  selected  be- 
cause it  was  first  reached  from  the  coast  of  France,  or 
because  as  agriculturists,  they  preferred  it,  is  not  cer- 
tainly known.  But  in  this  county,  near  Chelmsford, 
Avas  born,  about  the  year  1675,  Mr.  Daniel  Challiss, 
the  great-grandfather  of  the  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss.  He 
married  and  settled  at  Panfield  Farm,  near  Braintree, 
Essex  County.  He  had  ten  children,  who  were  born 
and  grew  up  in  that  jiarish.  The  youngest  of  these 
ten  children  was  Mr.  John  Challiss,  who  was  born  in 
1719.  This  Mr.  John  Challiss  had  six  children,  only 
two  of  whom,  James  and  John,  lived  to  reach  the  age 
of  manhood.  John,  who  was  the  youngest  of  the 
family,  was  born  at  Panfield  Farm,  December  2d, 
1767.  He  was  the  father  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss. 
He  emigrated  to  America,  in  1794. 

Little  is  known  of  the  history  of  these  generations, 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  35 

more  than  that  they  were  industrious  and  frugal,  and 
comfortable  in  life,  good  citizens  and  consistent  Protes- 
tants. The  principles  which  led  their  fathers  into 
exile  remained  dear  to  their  children  from  generation 
to  generation.  The  Huguenots  of  France  became  the 
Nonconformists  of  England.  The  great-grandfather 
and  his  family  were  Protestant  Dissenters  of  the  Inde- 
pendent denomination.  In  the  language  of  a  descen- 
dant of  the  English  branch  of  the  family :  "  They 
have  ever  been  real  Nonconformists,  firm  to  the  truth 
for  which  the  Master  died." 

James,  the  only  brother  of  Mr.  John  Challiss,  on 
the  death  of  their  father  took  possession  of  the  farm  at 
Panfield,  where  he  was  born  and  where  he  died.  He 
married  early,  and  had  fourteen  children  by  his  first 
and  three  by  a  second  wife.  After  his  second  mar- 
riage he  became  a  Baptist;  and  some  of  his  child- 
dren  and  grand-children  are  of  the  same  fiiith.  He 
was  a  man  of  vigorous  mind,  faithful  in  the  duties  of 
Christian  life,  and  sound  in  doctrine.  As  his  brother 
John  was  leaving  for  his  new  home  in  America,  he 
presented  him  with  a  copy  of  "  Gill's  Body  of  Divin- 
ity," as  a  parting  gift,  desiring  that  his  fiiith  in  God 
might  be  according  to  the  exposition  of  the  doctrines 
of  God's  word  by  this  favorite  author.  This  work  is 
still  retained  in  the  family  of  Pev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  as  a 
precious  memento  of  the  past. 


36  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

The  children  of  Mr.  James  Challiss  by  his  second 
wife  are  all  living.  Of  those  by  the  first  wife,  only 
tliree  now  remain — Sarah,  who  was  born  in  1785; 
James,  born  in  1788:  and  Emma,  born  in  1804. 
Sarah,  now  Mrs.  Ward,  a  widow  in  her  84th  year, 
has  a  distinct  recollection  of  the  time  when  her  uncle 
John  started  for  America  in  1794. 

In  1848,  she  and  her  family  came  to  this  country, 
but  in  about  four  years  returned  to  England.  Her 
daughter,  Mrs.  Parker,  remained  here.  She  died  in 
Philadelphia,  in  1857,  leaving  three  children,  Wil- 
liam, Sarah,  and  Emma. 

Mr.  William  Challiss,  a  son  of 'Mr.  James  Challiss 
by  his  first  wife,  died  in  1866.  He  was  a  Baptist 
and  an  earnest  Christian.  His  son  says,  to  his  praise, 
"  My  father  was  a  follower  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour, 
Jesus  Christ.  He  was  a  man  firm  in  principle,  slow 
in  decision,  much  in  meditation  and  in  closet-prayer, 
also  never  neglecting  family  prayer.  By  his  godly 
life  and  faithful  teaching  I  hope  I  gained  much  good 
to  my  own  soul.  Both  my  father  and  mother  died  in 
the  triumphs  of  the  gospel."  They  left  four  sons, 
John,  William,  James,  and  Daniel,  and  two  daughters, 
Mary  and  Lydia,  all  still  living  at  Bush-farm,  near 
Chelmsford,  Essex  county,  England. 

Of  the  other  children  of  this  large  family  of  Mr. 
James    Challiss,  some   died  in  early  life,  and   others 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  37 

grew  up,  married,  and  left  families.  But  it  is  not 
necessary  to  follow  their  history  further.  Sufficient 
has  been  presented  to  show  that  the  English  branch 
of  the  Challiss  family  is  now  represented  by  quite  a 
numerous  posterity. 

On  the  mother's  side,  the  ancestors  of  Rev.  J.  M. 
Challiss  appear  to  have  been  a  very  respectable  old 
English  family  of  Essex,  by  the  name  of  Milbank. 
His  grandfather,  Robert  Milbank,  was  born  at  Pan- 
field  Hall,  Essex  county,  in  the  year  1742.  He  mar- 
ried INIary,  daughter  of  Samuel  and  Mary  Watkinson, 
of  the  Parish  of  Felstead,  Essex.  She  was  born  in 
the  year  1745.  Some  of  her  family  emigrated  to  the 
United  States,  and  their  descendants  are  now  living 
in  the  Eastern  States,  and  are  citizens  of  wealth  and 
influence.  Mr.  Milbank,  soon  after  his  marriage,  set- 
tled at  Little  Waltham,  where  their  seven  children 
were  born,  Mary,  Elizabeth  and  Sarah,  Robert  and 
Samuel,  and  Ruth  and  Ann.  Mr.  Milbank  was  a 
farmer,  comfortable  in  circumstances,  energetic  in  his 
business,  and  much  respected  in  the  community.  He 
died  at  Little  Waltham,  September  26,  1780,  at  the 
early  age  of  thirty-eight  years.  Mrs.  Milbank  was 
thus  left  to  an  early  widowhood  with  these  seven 
children,  five  of  whom  were  under  ten  years  of  age. 
She  was  a  woman  of  great  decision  of  character  and 
energy  of  purpose.      Right  bravely  she  met  the  re- 


38  REV.  JAMES  M.   CUALLISS. 

sponsibilities  of  this  trying  position.  For  years, 
alone,  she  faithfully  attended  to  the  wants  and  educa- 
tion of  her  family.  The  after  history  of  these  chil- 
dren showed  the  impress  of  this  mother's  fidelity  and 
character  made  during  these  years  of  struggle. 

About  four  years  after  her  husband's  death,  Mrs. 
Milbank  was  married  to  Mr,  John  Lambert,  of  Pan- 
field  Hall,  by  whom  she  had  one  child,  Rachel.  Mr. 
Lambert  also  had  several  children  by  a  previous  mar- 
riage. He  was  a  farmer  of  considerable  property,  a 
man  of  excellent  mind,  and  of  good  general  infor- 
mation, and  great  independence  of  character.  He  was 
enterprising,  and  ambitious  of  advancement.  He  was 
also  a  sturdy  Puritan,  both  in  his  politics  and  theolo- 
gy,— zealous  in  his  religious  faith,  strongly  democratic 
in  his  political  views,  and  uncompromising  in  his  op- 
position to  a  national  church,  and  "  church  rates,"  to 
support  the  "  Establishment."  He  ever  denounced 
the  injustice  of  the  law  which  compelled  him  and 
thousands  of  fellow-Englishmen  to  support  a  church 
Avith  which  they  had  no  connection,  and  but  \ery  lit- 
tle sympathy. 

Mr.  Lambert  had  long  cherished  the  purpose  of 
emigrating  to  the  United  States.  He  was  probably 
influenced  to  this  desire  both  by  his  views  of  political 
and  religious  liberty  and  the  hope  of  worldly  advan- 
tao-e  to   himself  and   family.     He  finally  visited  the 


REV.  JAMES  M.  CIIALLISS.  39 

country,  and  after  some  months  of  examination  he  was 
so  well  pleased  with  the  prospects  of  its  growth  in 
material  prosperity,  and  the  advantages  it  offered  to 
men  of  enterprise,  and  also  with  its  republican  form  of 
government  and  perfect  religious  toleration,  that  he 
resolved  to  make  it  his  future  home.  He  returned  to 
England  for  his  fimily,  and  early  in  1794,  with 
his  wife  and  part  of  their  children  he  embarked  at 
Liverpool  for  America.  Of  the  ]\Iilbank  children, 
Elizabeth, — afterwards  the  mother  of  Rev.  J.  M. 
Challiss, — Samuel,  and  Sarah  accompanied  the  family, 
and  also  some  of  the  Lambert  children.  Sarah  IMil- 
bank  died  March  10,  1794,  while  they  were  on  the 
passage — a  great  grief  to  them  all,  casting  a  dark 
shadow  over  the  bright  scenes  and  happy  prospects  of 
their  future  home.  The  rest  of  the  family  arrived  in 
safety,  after  a  dangerous  and  tedious  voyage  of  four- 
teen weeks. 

JSIr.  Lambert  purchased  a  large  tract  of  land  in 
Pittsgrove,  Salem  county.  New  Jersey.  The  purchase 
did  not  prove  as  profitable  as  was  expected,  and  he 
disposed  of  it  after  a  few  years,  but  he  continued  a 
resident  in  Salem  county  till  near  the  time  of  his 
death,  which  occurred  in  Philadelphia  in  1803,  at  the 
residence  of  his  son-in-law,  Mr.  John  P.  Cooper.  He 
Avas  a  farmer  of  much  note,  for  his  day,  and  was 
deeply  interested  in  the  introduction  of  foreign  seeds 
and  stock,  and  in  the  advancement  of  husbandry  in 


40  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

general.  He  had  consultations,  written  and  personal, 
with  Gen.  George  Washington  on  the  agricultural  in- 
terests of  the  country.  His  name  is  favorably  repre- 
sented by  quite  a  number  of  descendants  now  residing 
in  Salem  county,  New  Jersey. 

His  wife,  Mrs.  Mary  Lambert,  grandmother  of 
Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  died  in  Penn's  Neck,  Salefn 
County,  New  Jersey,  December  28,  1802,  in  the  fifty- 
seventh  year  of  her  age.  Four  of  her  children  by  Mr. 
Robert  Milbank,— her  first  husband, — Mary,  Robert, 
Ruth,  and  Ann  remained  in  England,  and  all  died 
there.  Mary  married  Mr.  Samuel  Watkinson,  a  son 
of  her  mother's  brother.  They  had  three  children, 
one  daughter  and  two  sons.  Her  second  husband  was 
the  Rev.  J.  Bass,  by  whom  she  had  two  children,  a 
son  and  daughter.  All  these  are  now  dead,  except 
the  daughter  by  her  first  marriage,  now  Mrs.  Mary 
Joscelyne,  in  the  seventy-second  year  of  her  age. 
Her  husband  died  early  in  1866,  after  a  married  life 
of  forty-six  years*  Mrs.  Joscelyne  has  been  a  Congre- 
gationalist  for  many  years.  Two  of  her  children  were 
Baptists,  and  also  some  of  her  grandchildren.  She  is 
a  very  excellent  Christian  woman,  full  of  faith  and 
good  works.  She  has  seen  much  sorrow  and  has 
known  some  of  the  severest  struggles  of  life.  But 
God  has  not  disappointed  her  trust.  She  still  leans 
upon  his  arm  and  rejoices  ''as  the  manna  falls  day 
bv  da  v." 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  41 

Three  of  the  Milbank  children  left  for  America  with 
Mr.  Lambert  in  1794.  Of  these  Sarah  died  on  the 
passage;  Elizabeth,  who  was  mother  of  Rev.  J.  M. 
Challiss,  was  born  at  Little  Waltham,  May  2d,  1770, 
and  was  just  about  twenty-four  years  old  when  they 
reached  Philadelphia ;  and  Samuel,  who  was  the 
youngest  son  of  the  family,  born  at  Little  Waltham, 
December  15th,  1775,  and  was  in  his  twentieth  year 
when  the}'  reached  this  country,  and  was  full  of  hope 
and  anxious  to  engage  in  the  great  conflicts  of  business 
life.  He  first  settled  in  Philadelphia,  and  was  asso- 
ciated in  business  with  a  Mr.  Robert  Morris.  After  a 
few  years  he  moved  to  the  city  of  New  York,  and 
purchased  a  property  in  what  was  then  regarded  the 
suburbs,  but  by  the  rapid  growth  of  the  city,  soon  be- 
came a  part  of  its  active  business  centre.  Mr.  Samuel 
Milbank  was  a  man  of  sterling  business  qualities,  of 
strict  integrity,  and  of  a  generous  heart.  He  was 
also  a  consistent  and  active  Christian.  He  rapidly 
grew  in  wealth  and  in  the  esteem  of  his  fellow- 
citizens  of  the  great  Metropolis  where  he  had  fixed  his 
home. 

While  residing  in  Philadelphia,  in  the  year  1798, 
he  married  Elizabeth  Wall,  an  English  lady,  who  was 
fellow-passenger  with  the  family  in  their  voyage  from 
Liverpool  to  America.  She  was  an  estimable  Chris- 
tian woman,  and  a  devoted  wife  and  mother.  With 
great  prudence  and  skill  she  managed  the  domestic  in- 


42  REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS. 

terests  of  their  numerous  family,  ever  making  their 
home  the  abode  of  comfort  and  pleasure.  Carefully 
and  prayerfully  she  sought  to  train  her  children  to  a 
life  of  piety  and  industry.  Nor  were  her  labors  in 
vain.  The  fruit  of  after  years  showed  the  anxious 
sowing  of  good  seed  in  carefully  prepared  soil.  The 
loving  tenderness  and  simple  dignity  of  the  wife  and 
mother  gave  a  charm  to  the  home  of  this  family, 
which  was  grateful  to  the  heart  of  every  guest,  and 
inexpressibly  dear  to  the  members  of  the  house- 
hold. 

It  is  not  strange  that  the  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  so 
often  referred  to  his  "  dear  Uncle  and  Aunt  Milbank." 
He  often  spoke  of  the  influence  of  their  encouraging 
words  and  Christian  sympathy,  during  the  early  days 
of  his  ministry.  In  these  times  of  his  inexperience 
and  anxious  labors  and  earnest  struggles,  how  "  like 
cold  water  to  a  thirsty  soul,"  were  the  cheering  words 
and  acts  of  kindness  from  these  Christian  relatives  to 
the  young  pastor.  He  loved  to  visit  them  at  their 
home,  and  to  have  them  or  any  of  their  family,  "  come 
to  the  humble  home  of  the  })lain  country  preacher." 
He  often  expressed  his  gratitude  for  the  good  influence 
of  this  uncle  and  aunt  ujion  his  Christian  life  and 
liis  work  in  the  ministry.  He  seemed  unable  to  tell 
his  full  appreciation  of  their  worth,  and  their  kind- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  43 

ness  to  him,  and  he  felt  their  death  as  a  son,  who 
mourned  the  loss  of  his  own  parents. 

Mr.  and  Mrs.  Milhank  had  twelve  children  ;  seven 
sons,  George,  Charles,  Samuel,  Robert,  Isaac,  Jere- 
miah, and  James ;  and  five  daughters,  Eliza,  Mary, 
Susan,  Ann,  and  Sarah.  All  of  these  grew  up  to  ma- 
turity. Four  of  the  sons  and  the  five  daughters  are 
still  living.  Most  of  these  have  families,  and  are 
Christians  like  their  parents,  of  the  Baptist  faith. 
They  are  prosperous  and  influential  citizens.  Most  of 
them  are  living  in  the  city  of  New  York. 

The  father,  Mr.  Samuel  Milbank,  after  a  life  of 
great  activity  in  business,  and  of  consistent  piety,  and 
usefulness  in  the  church,  respected  and  beloved  of  all 
who  knew  him,  died  at  his  country  residence  in  Plain- 
field,  New  Jersey,  on  the  25th  of  July,  1853,  at  the 
ripe  old  age  of  seventy-eight  years.  Mrs.  Milbank 
survived  her  husband  a  few  years,  cheering  her  chil- 
dren and  grand-children  by  her  presence.  Finally, 
she  came  to  her  "  grave  in  a  full  age,  like  as  a  shock 
of  corn  Cometh  in  his  season."  She  died  in  New 
York,  February  6th,  1860,  at  the  advanced  age  of 
eighty-two  years. 

In  the  same  ship  which  brought  the  Lamberts  and 
Milbanks  to  America,  came  also  Mr.  John  Challiss, 
the  father  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss.     Mr.  Challiss  was 

then  in  his  twenty-seventh  year.     Previous  to  leaving 

4* 


44  RT'^V.  JAMES  31.    CIIALLISS. 

Eno'land  lie  was  eno-aged  to  be  married  to  Miss  Eliza- 
beth  W.  INIilbank.  In  the  old  country,  their  father- 
land, amid  the  hallowed  scenes  and  associations  of 
their  childhood  home,  they  had  pledged  to  each  other 
heart  and  hand  for  life's  journey,  and  had  agreed  to 
share  the  hazards  and  hopes,  the  toils  and  joys  attend- 
ing that  journey  in  a  strange  land.  But  for  some 
reason — perhaps,  desiring  to  have  some  reliable  busi- 
ness engagements  or  some  prospects  of  their  future 
home  before  their  marriage — their  union  was  de- 
ferred until  about  a  year  after  reaching  this  country. 
How  far  they  succeeded  in  meeting  these  desires,  and 
what  their  future  prospects  \vere,  can  only  be  inferred. 
Mr.  Challiss  had  secured  employment  in  a  banking- 
house,  and  they  felt  their  prospects  sufficiently  cheer- 
ing to  enter  upon  the  duties  and  cares  of  married 
life. 

On  the  29th  of  April,  1795,  Mr.  John  Challiss  and 
Miss  Elizabeth  Vi.  Milbank  were  married,  in  Phila- 
delphia ;  and  now  with  the  world  before  them  and 
Providence  as  their  guide,  they  start  anew  on  the 
journey  of  life.  For  the  time  being,  they  concluded  to 
remain  in  Philadelphia  doing  the  best  they  could  in 
the  position  then  held,  but  watching  for  openings  of 
more  promise  and  permanency.  What  hopes  and 
fears,  what  joys  and  sorrows,  what  struggles  and  tri- 
umphs, were  theirs,  or  how  the  current  of  life  ran  on, 


IiFA\  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  45 

they  have  not  left  us  the  means  of  knowing.  But  we 
have  reason  to  believe,  that  with  right  brave  hearts 
and  cheerful  spirits  they  sought  to  meet  the  duties  of 
life  and  conquer  in  its  struggles. 

On  the  24th  of  January,  1796,  their  first-born, 
John  W.,  came  to  grace  their  household.  Now  a  new 
impulse  was  given  to  their  life-labors.  Not  for  them- 
selves alone,  but  also  for  this  little  one,  of  their  own 
bone  and  flesh,  were  they  to  endure  the  toils  of  every 
day.  They  were  learning  the  experience  of  many 
hearts,  that  love  lightens  the  burdens  we  bear,  and 
that  it  is  sweet  to  toil  for  those  dearer  to  us  than  our- 
selves. 

On  the  15th  of  January,  1799,  James  M.,  the  sec- 
ond child,  and  the  subject  of  this  memoir,  was  born  in 
Philadelphia,  and  now  there  were  two  to  care  for  and 
two  to  love — the  prattling  little  boy  and  his  baby 
brother.  What  strange  joy  and  anxious  thoughts 
filled  the  hearts  of  the  parents  as  they  looked  upon 
these  little  ones,  dependent  upon  their  care,  and  to  be 
moulded  by  their  influence.  It  was  not  care  alone 
these  little  ones  brought,  but  their  presence  and  smiles 
shed  light  and  joy  throughout  the  household.  The 
plans  of  future  life  are  formed  in  reference  to  them. 
What  promotes  their  good  is  willingly  sacrificed,  and 
what  mars  their  joy  brings  no  joy  to  parent  hearts. 
How  much  these  parents  planned  for  the  future  of 


46  lil^y-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

their  little  boys  and  how  bright  that  future  seemed  we 
cannot  tell.  But  very  soon  all  plans  were  defeated 
and  the  pleasant  scenes  were  all  clouded  over.  In  the 
early  autumn  after  the  birth  of  James,  Philadelphia 
was  again  visited  by  that  terrible  scourge,  the  yellow 
fever,  and  many  were  stricken  down  and  died. 
Among  the  victims  of  this  fearful  pestilence  was  Mr. 
John  Challiss.  He  died  September  24th,  1799,  at  the 
early  age  of  thirty-two  years. 

But  little  is  known  now  in  reference  to  the  religious 
views  or  experience  of  Mr.  Challiss.  He  had  been 
carefully  trained  in  childhood  by  Christian  parents, 
and  followed  in  after  years  by  the  earnest  desires  and 
efforts  of  a  Christian  brother,  and  had  enjoyed  the  ad- 
vantages of  Christian  associations.  But  how  far  he 
had  profited  by  these  privileges,  or  whether  he  ever 
made  a  confession  of  faith  in  Christ,  or  entertained  a 
hope  of  salvation  at  the  time  of  his  death,  is  not 
known  to  us.  He  died  so  early  in  life  and  so  soon 
after  reaching  this  country,  Avhile  a  comparative 
stranger,  and  while  yet  his  children  were  too  young 
to  remember  or  know  in  reference  to  this  subject. 

Little  James  was  thus  left  to  the  sole  care  of  a 
young  widowed  mother  before  he  was  nine  months 
old.  His  mother  was  greatly  embarrassed  and  de- 
pressed by  the  loss  of  her  husband,  and  the  responsi- 
bility, so  suddenly  thrown  upon  her,  of  providing  for 


RUV.  JAMES  31.    CHALLISS.  47 

and  training  aright  these  two  little  boys,  the  elder  not 
yet  four  years  old.  Stouter  hearts  have  quailed  under 
afflictions  less  sudden  and  severe,  and  responsibilities 
less  weighty. 

Soon  after  the  death  of  the  father,  the  mother 
m©ved  to  the  town  of  Salem,  New  Jersey,  probably  to 
be  nearer  her  mother,  Mrs,  Lambert,  Avho  was  then  re- 
siding in  that  vicinity.  But,  in  a  little  more  than 
three  years  after  her  husband's  death,  she  was  called  to 
mourn  the  loss  of  this  dear  mother.  The  only  near 
relatives  now  left  her  in  this  country  were  her  brother, 
Samuel  Milbank,  in  New  York,  and  a  half-sister,  Ra- 
chel Lambert,  residing  near  Salem,  but  not  yet  grown 
to  womanhood.  She  continued  to  reside  in  Salem, 
teaching  a  select  school  of  young  children  and  earnest- 
ly watching  over  her  little  boys,  and  carefully  training 
them   for  the   duties  of  their    future   life. 

On  the  8th  of  .March,  1808,  she  married  her  second 
husband,  Mr.  Ephraim  Sheppard  of  Salem.  He  was 
a  kind  husband  and  careful  provider  for  the  wants  and 
pleasures  of  his  family.  He  sympathized  with  his 
wife  in  her  anxieties  for  the  future  of  her  boys,  and 
greatly  aided  her  in  their  education.  But  Mrs.  Shep- 
pard was  not  permitted  to  enjoy  long  the  companion- 
ship of  her  husband.  He  died  November  5,  1813; 
and  thus  early  the  mother  was  left  to  a  second  widow- 
hood with  her  two  boys  and  a  little  girl  of  four  years 


48  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

old — again  to  meet  siugle-handed  the  conflicts  of  life. 
Right  bravely  did  she  encounter  the  trials  and  respon- 
sibilities of  her  position,  and  ever  faithfully  sought  to 
do  the  very  best  she  could  for  her  children.  Her  own 
comforts  were  cheerfully  sacrificed  for  their  good  and 
pleasure,  not  with  doting  and  damaging  fondness, 
but  with  wdse  discrimination  and  true  maternal  love. 
She  was  very  anxious  for  the  spiritual  good  of  her 
children,  and  rejoiced  over  their  conversion  and  grow- 
ing usefulness  in  the  church.  She  was  a  woman  of 
earnest  spirit  and  a  faithful  Christian  mother.  An 
English  relative  says  of  her,  "She  was  of  a  sweet, 
amiable,  but  timid  disposition — a  good  woman,  much 
aflSicted,  but  brave  to  endure,  patient  and  humble. 

Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss'  remembrance  of  his  mother  was 
full  of  appreciation  and  tenderness.  He  ever  de- 
lighted to  speak  of  her  worth, — her  love  and  labors, 
her  example  and  prayers.  He  felt  that  her  moulding 
influence  had  much  to  do  in  shaping  his  life  and  de- 
veloping whatever  was  good  or  useful  in  his  labors. 
She  felt  honored  that  God  had  called  her  son  into  the 
ministry  and  made  him  useful  in  winning  souls  to 
Christ.  She  had  felt  some  serious  misgivings  in  ref- 
erence to  his  entering  upon  this  great  work,  and  often 
expressed  her  anxiety  lest  he  was  mistaken  in  his  call 
to  the  ministry,  and  her  fears  that  he  would  fail  in  his 
undertaking,  for  want  of  natural  qualifications  or  pre- 


■     REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  49 

paration  for  the  work.  Perhaps  these  feelings  were 
not  entirely  unmixed  with  the  natural  pride  of  a 
mother's  heart  for  the  position  of  her  son  in  the  opin- 
ion of  the  world.  But  when  the  decision  of  duty  was 
fully  made  by  this  son,  that  he  must  preach,  he  had 
the  warmest  sympathies  of  his  mother's  heart  in  all 
his  early  struggles,  and  her  prayers  and  counsels  con- 
tinued to  follow  him  in  his  work  until  her  death. 
She  frequently  visited  him  during  his  first  settlement, 
greatly  enjoyed  his  preaching  and  his  society,  and  re- 
joiced that  so  much  success  attended  his  ministry. 
She  died  in  Salem,  at  the  residence  of  her  son-in-law, 
Mr.  John  N.  Cooper,  on  March  25th,  1842,  in  the 
seventy -second  year  of  her  age.  She  had  been  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Baptist  Church  in  Salem  for  nearly  thirty 
years. 

The  only  brother  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  was  John 
W.  Challiss,  who  was  his  senior  by  three  years. 
Among  the  papers  of  the  subject  of  oui  memoir,  we 
find  this  reference  to  his  brother; — probably  soon 
after  his  death.  "  My  widowed  mother  removed  with 
her  two  little  boys,  John  and  James,  to  Salem, 
New  Jersey.  My  brother,  John  "W.  Challiss,  refhained 
in  Salem  during  his  entire  life.  He  married  Miss 
Ann  Curry  of  that  place.  They  had  three  sons,  Rob- 
ert, Thomas,  and  Spencer.  My  brother  maintained  a 
hallowed  influence,    both    in    the  church  and  in  the 


50  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

town  of  his  residence.  He  was  a  belov^ed  member  of 
the  Salem  Baptist  Church  for  nearly  twenty-nine 
years.  Of  this  time  he  was  twenty  years  an  lionored 
deacon,  and  twelve  years  a  trustee  and  treasurer  of  the 
church.  He  died  on  the  second  of  May,  1851,  in  tlie 
fifty-ninth  year  of  his  age,  leaving  a  widow  and  three 
sons  to  mourn  his  loss."  His  son,  Robert,  died  May 
13th,  1844,  leaving  a  widow  and  two  daughters.  He 
had  been  a  member  of  the  Salem  Baptist  Church 
about  six  years.  The  widow  of  J.  W.  Challiss,  and 
the  widow  of  his  son  Robert,  and  the  two  sons, 
Thomas  and  Spencer,  and  their  wives,  are  still  living 
in  Salem,  and  are  all  members  of  the  Baptist  Church. 
Mr.  Challiss  had  also  a  half-sister,  Mary  W.  Shep- 
pard,  the  only  child  of  his  mother  by  her  second  hus- 
band. She  was  born  August  1,  1809.  She  married 
Mr.  John  N.  Cooper  of  Salem,  a  grandson  of  Mr. 
John  Lambert,  who  was  her  grandmother's  second 
husband.  Mrs.  Cooper's  only  child,  a  little  boy,  died 
in  1836,  before  he  was  four  years  old.  She  Avas  a 
woman  of  great  excellence  of  character,  and  an  earnest 
Christian.  Her  name  is  still  cherished  with  pleasure 
and  gratitude  by  many  friends,  and  by  some  who 
have  special  cause  to  remember  her  kindness.  She 
died  in  Salem,  October  20th,  1843,  having  been  a 
member  of  the  Salem  Baptist  Church  for  more  than 
twenty-two  years. 


REV.  J  ABIES  M.    CHALLISS.  51 

We  have  thus  gone  back  to  the  earliest  known  an- 
cestors of  the  Eev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  and  followed  up 
their  history  and  the  history  of  some  branches  of  the 
family  to  the  present  time.  We  have  also  run  ahead 
(if  the  current  of  time  in  our  narrative,  in  order  to 
dispose  of  the  family  history  in  this  chapter.  While 
this  work  has  been  done  with  more  minuteness  of  de- 
tail than  will  interest  the  general  reader,  yet  it  will 
be  hardly  full  enough  to  satisfy  the  desires  of  the 
various  branches  of  the  family.  Sufficient,  however, 
has  been  presented  to  give  a  tolerably  clear  view  of 
the  family  relations,  and  kindred  antecedents  and 
surroundings  of  the  subject  of  this  memoir,  and  we 
are  now  prepared  to  give  our  attention  to  his  own 
personal  history. 


CHAPTER  III. 

CHILDHOOD     AKD     YOUTH. 

WJ  HILE  our  own  memory  clings  tenaciously  to  the 
'  '  events  of  our  early  years ;  magnifies  little 
things  into  things  of  great  importance ;  and  gathers 
into  her  store-house  many  precious  treasures,  which 
are  counted  over  again  and  again  as  we  journey 
through  life ;  yet  the  world  generally,  and  even  those 
around  us,  remember  little  or  nothing  of  our  early  his- 
tory. All  through  life,  each  one  is  so  intent  upon  his 
own  interests,  and  so  absorbed  in  his  own  history, 
that  outside  of  a  very  limited  circle,  but  few  notes  are 
made  of  the  passing  events  of  individual  experience. 
It  is  only  here  and  there  one  of  the  multitude,  and 
only  now  and  then  in  the  onward  and  rapid  flow  of 
time,  that  the  world's  attention  is  so  directed  to  indivi- 
duals as  to  inquire  about  their  origin  or  to  keep  post- 
ed in  their  current  history.  Sometimes  men  attract  at- 
tention to  themselves  by  some  abnormal  developments, 
some  physical  deformity,  or  wonderful  feats ;  some 
mental  enormities  or  happy  hhs  in  trade ;  some  strang-e 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  53 

and  impulsive  moral  heroism,  or  terrible  crime.  But 
the  attention  thus  gained  to  themselves  is  much  like 
that  given  by  the  multitude  to  the  transient  meteor  or 
passing  comet,  more  of  wonder  than  inquiry.  Occa- 
sionally one  of  superior  genius  or  towering  intellect 
or  great  goodness  secures  the  general  homage,  and 
men  pause  to  ask  for  his  early  personal  experience 
and  history.  But  as  these  are  the  developments  of 
the  maturer  years  of  life,  the  inquiry  does  not  begin 
soon  enough  to  gain  a  full  and  clear  history  of  his 
childhood  and  youth.  Comparatively  little  is  known 
of  the  early  life,  the  thoughts,  purposes,  and  experi- 
ence, even  of  those  whose  wonderful  genius  or  bril- 
liant achievements  in  after  years,  have  astonished  the 
world,  and  who  ever  live  in  history.  So  little  interest 
is  felt  in  preserving  the  current  thoughts  and  feelings 
of  childhood  and  youth,  that  we  fail  to  recognise  the 
antecedent  influence,  which  these  often  have  in  giving 
shape  and  direction  to  the  subsequent  labors  of  life. 
Doubtless  many  of  the  brilliant  achievements  of  men, 
which  seem  to  have  resulted  from  some  sudden  and 
mighty  throe  of  genius,  have  had  their  first  concep- 
tions in  the  thoughts  of  the  child  or  youth,  and  have 
grown  and  matured  by  years  of  careful  thinking,  until 
the  man  has  sent  them  forth  without  giving  the  child 
credit  for  their  conception,  or  for  ministering  in  any- 
wise to  their  growth.     It  is  true  that  a  vast  number  of 


54  REV.  JAMES  M.   ClIALLISS. 

"Air  Castles"  are  built  in  cliiklhood  and  youth,  to  be 
swej)t  away  by  the  experience  of  increasing  years,  yet 
it  is  also  true  that  then  foundations  are  sometimes  laid 
for  structures  that  will  endure  the  wear  of  time.  The 
declaration,  that  "  men  and  women  are  only  grown-up 
children,"  has  in  it  more  of  truth  than  is  generally 
conceded.  If  the  influences  we  gather  in  childhood 
were  clearly  recognized  in  after  years,  we  should  find 
that  the  inclinations  of  life  are  often  received  in  early 
childhood,  and  that  the  results  we  reach  have  been 
long  foreshadowed. 

But  little  can  now  be  gathered  up  of  the  history  of 
the  childhood  and  youth  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss.  He 
was  the  son  of  John  and  Elizabeth  "W.  Challiss,  and 
was  born  in  Philadelphia,  January  4th,  1799.  His 
father  died  in  September  of  the  same  year,  and  soon 
after,  his  mother  moved  to  Salem,  N.  J.,  where  his 
childhood  and  youth  were  spent. 

He  has  left  us  only  a  general  reference  to  events 
connected  with  this  period  of  his  life,  but  no  consecu- 
tive record,  and  at  this  late  day  it  is  difficult  to  gather 
up  the  unwritten  history  of  a  child  born  in  the  last 
century.  But  few  contemporaries  of  his  childhood  days 
remain,  and  with  most  of  these  the  remembrance  of 
any  personal  history  of  fifty  years  ago,  except  their 
own,  is  very  vague  and  general.  Some  of  the  older 
people  of  Salem  remember  him  as  an  interesting  little 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  55 

boy,  the  son  of  an  English  hidy,  left  to  early  widow- 
hood, who  came  with  her  two  little  boys  to  find  a 
home  in  their  town.  There  are  some  who  shared  with 
him  the  instructions  of  his  mother's  school,  and  can 
still  recall  many  pleasant  things  connected  with  his 
childhood. 

It  is  presumed  that  the  early  youth  of  James  was 
very  much  like  that  of  other  boys ;  perhaps  with  some 
special  shading  of  sorrow,  which  a  fatherless  condition 
throws  over  a  sensitive  heart — some  maturer  anxieties 
than  are  common  to  boys,  but  which  a  thoughtful  lit- 
tle son  would  feel  for  a  struggling,  widowed  mother 
in  a  strange  land,  far  from  her  kindred. 

He  had  the  best  a:tlvantages  which  this  mother, 
most  of  the  time  alone  in  the  work,  could  give  her 
fatherless  children.  It  was  doubtless  to  their  advan- 
tage that  the  mother  was  obliged  to  open  a  school  to 
aid  in  the  support  of  her  family.  They  received  the 
advantages  which  her  school  afforded,  and  at  the  same 
time  remained  under  her  constant  and  anxious  care, 
freed  from  many  evil  influences  which  are  encoun- 
tered among  strangers. 

It  was  no  small  privilege  to  be  watched  over  by  a 
mother  who  ever  thought,  to  the  very  extent  of  her 
ability,  to  give  her  children  such  mental  and  moral 
culture;  to  implant  such  principles  of  religion;  and  to 
form  such  habits  of  industry,  as  would  best  prepare 


5(3  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLrSS. 

tliem  for  the  duties  of  future  life.  Beyond  doubt,  this 
son  received  impressions  from  the  anxious  moulding 
hand  of  this  mother  which  gave  shape  to  his  subse- 
quent character. 

When  he  had  just  entered  his  tenth  year,  his 
mother  married  her  second  husband,  and  before  he 
was  eleven  a  little  half-sister  came  to  grace  the  house- 
hold. Those  only  who  know  the  strange  and  joyful 
boundings  of  a  boy's  heart,  when  the  first  sister  joins 
the  family,  can  appreciate  the  feelings  of  James  as  he 
looked  upon  this  new  young  face,  and  felt  the  respon- 
sibility and  manliness  of  a  big  brother. 

But  this  little  one  was  soon  to  share  the  orphanage 
of  her  half-brother.  Before  her  fifth  autumn  was 
passed,  the  mother  entered  upon  her  second  w^idow- 
hood,  and  James  is  left  again  to  the  sole  guidance  of 
this  mother,  who  now  has  the  care  of  three  fatherless 
children. 

So  soon  as  he  reached  the  proper  age  he  left  home 
to  learn  a  trade.  His  brother  John  had  already  en- 
tered upon  his  apprenticeship.  In  reference  to  this 
])eriod  of  his  life,  he  says :  "  I  was  at  a  very  early  age 
berefl  of  my  father — he  having  died  the  same  year  in 
which  I  was  born.  Thus  I  was  left  under  nine 
months  old,  with  a  widowed  mother,  a  fond  mother, 
the  only  parent  I  have  ever  known.  At  this  early 
period  of  my  life  my  afflicted  mother  moved  with  her 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  57 

two  little  sons,  John  and  James,  to  Salem,  N.  J. 
Here,  under  her  watchful  care  and  many  prayers,  I 
was  reared  to  years  of  accountability.  Desirous  to 
train  her  son  to  habits  of  industry,  I  was  at  a  suitable 
age  put  out  from  home  as  an  apprentice  to  Deacon 
Stephen  Mulford,  of  precious  memory,  at  the  business 
of  lady  shoe-making.  I  remained  until  I  was  twenty- 
one  years  of  age,  so  my  opportunities  for  education 
were  very  limited." 

During  his  apprenticeship,  James,  though  away 
from  his  mother's  house,  was  still  near  her  and  con- 
stantly under  her  moulding  care  and  affectionate  guid- 
ance and  sympathy.  Here  in  the  sacred  precincts  of 
this  mother's  home,  and  in  the  warm  embrace  of  this 
mother's  heart,  now  impressed  with  the  subduing  ex- 
perience and  sorrow  of  a  second  widowhood,  the  ap- 
prentice boy  spent  many  of  his  leisure  hours.  How 
gladly,  when  his  day's  work  was  ended,  and  on  the 
early  morning  of  the  Lord's  Day,  he  hastened  to  re- 
ceive the  cheerful  welcome  of  this  mother,  and  the 
childish  greetings  of  his  little  sister,  and  to  share  with 
his  brother  the  joys  of  companionshij)  they  so  much 
loved.  The  influence  of  this  continued  and  habitual 
association  with  his  brother  and  little  sister,  under  his 
mother's  roof  and  guided  by  her  anxious  Christian 
heart,  was  happy  in  moulding  his  early  habits  and 
thoughts,  and  in  developing  that  love  of  home,  tender- 


58  ^Er.  JAMES  M.   CllALLISS. 

ness  of  all  family  ties,  and  that  simple  gentleness  to 
children,  which  so  much  characterized  his  subseqnent 
life. 

But  in  the  result  of  his  early  training  we  must  not 
forget  the  influence  of  the  worthy  Christian  family, 
and  the  devoted  Christian  man,  with  whom  his  aj)- 
prentice  years  were  spent.  Deacon  Stephen  Mulford 
was  a  man  of  rare  excellencies.  He  had  professed  his 
faith  in  Christ  years  before  James  was  born,  and  for 
many  years  he  was  a  faithful  office-bearer  in  the  Bap- 
tist Church.  It  is  said  of  him,  "  He  lived  the  re- 
ligion he  professed,  and  always  gave  it  the  influence 
of  his  example.  He  was  a  man  of  peace.  He  loved 
the  ffates  of  Zion  and  the  souls  of  men.  He  was 
greatly  beloved  by  all  who  knew  him.  He  seemed  to 
pattern  after  the  beloved  disciple  who  leaned  on  Jesus' 
bosom.  In  life  he  was  eminently  useful,  and  in  his 
death,  peaceful  but  greatly  lamented."  Such  testi- 
monials of  character  from  those  who  were  intimately 
associated  with  him  for  very  many  years,  express  no 
doubtful  praise, — a  noble  eulogy  to  a  humble  but  use- 
ful man  of  God.  His  memory  still  lives.  He  proved 
a  faithful  guide  to  James  in  his  temporal  and  spiritu- 
al interests,  and  was  ever  remembered  by  him  with 
great  respect  and  love.  He  had  thoughts  concerning 
the  boy  committed  to  his  care,  above  the  mere  profit 
he   could  realize  from   his  labors.      As   a  steward  of 


BEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  59 

God  he  accepted  the  guardianship  of  the  wliole  boy, 
body  and  soul,  and  sought  to  train  him,  not  only  in 
the  business  of  the  world  but  in  that  godliness  which 
"hath  promise  of  the  life  that  now  is,  and  of  that 
which  is  to  come."  Mr.  Challiss  often  referred  to  the 
influence  which  this  man's  example  and  teachings 
had  upon  his  life,  ever  alluding  to  him  as  "  Deacon 
Mulford  of  precious  memory." 

Such  were  the  combined  influences  which  his  home 
and  his  apprenticeship  exerted  upon  James  during  the 
years  so  full  of  danger  to  youth's  inexperience  and 
waywardness.  But  we  are  not  to  suj)pose  that  he  was 
free  from  all  the  foibles  and  freaks  of  childhood  and 
youth,  or  that  he  invariably  responded  to  the  motives 
addressed  to  his  higher  nature,  or  always  rendered 
cheerful  obedience  to  the  calls  of  duty.  He  is  not 
claimed  as  a  prodigy  in  mental  or  moral  develop- 
ments, or  in  the  improvement  made  of  the  happy  in- 
fluences surrounding  him.  With  a  nature  and  tenden- 
cies like  other  children  and  youth,  exposed  to  many 
similar  temptations  and  trials,  it  is  not  presumed  that 
the  current  of  his  life  always  ran  smoothly  on.  He 
doubtless  came  in  for  his  share  of  heart-breaks  and 
heart-aches,  and  often  needed  the  chidings  of  reproof 
as  well  as  the  guidings  of  love.  But  the  docility  of 
his  childhood,  and  the  consideration  and  manliness  of 
his  youth,  were  such  as   to  awaken  the  observation. 


60  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

and  call  forth  the  commendation  of  the  good  men  and 
women  among  whom  he  lived. 

In  answer  to  the  question,  "  Did  you  know  Mr. 
Challiss  in  his  early  life  ?"  an  intelligent  old  man  re- 
plied, "Oh  yes,  I  remember  him  well  from  a  very 
little  boy.  He  was  a  very  docile  child,  and  tender- 
hearted. I  was  older  than  he,  but  we  were  school- 
mates in  the  old  Salem  Academy.  He  was  an  amia- 
ble boy,  rather  serious-minded  and  considerate.  I 
knew  him  well  through  his  apprenticeship.  He  bore 
an  excellent  character,  and  was  somewhat  ambitious 
of  position  in  social  life,  and  had  the  esteem  of  those 
in  the  best  society  in  Salem."  A  daughter  of  Deacon 
Mulford  says,  "  I  was  at  home  during  his  residence  in 
my  father's  family.  He  was  a  docile  boy,  attentive 
and  serious-minded.  Faithful  to  his  duties  he  was 
always  pleasant  in  the  family  and  generally  respected. 
He  was  quite  a  favorite  with  many,  because  of  his 
amiable  disposition  and  excellent  character.  0:h3.' 
boys  were  often  jealous  of  him  on  account  of  this,  but 
were  compelled  to  respect  him  for  his  superior 
worth." 

In  the  order  of  Providence,  James  was  placed  under 
favorable  moulding  influences,  and  happily  yielded  to 
their  power.  He  passed  through  his  childhood  an  1 
youth  without  the  contamination  of  those  grosser  sins 
to  which  youth  often  fall  victims,  and  without  con- 


EEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  61 

tracting  those  evil  habits  which  generally  commence 
in  youth  and  hold  men  in  their  servitude  as  long 
as  they  live.  Not  only  did  he  escape  these  evils 
during  his  youth,  but  his  mind  was  then  so  fortified 
with  moral  principles  and  religious  truths  that  he  was 
better  prepared  to  encounter  and  to  resist  the  temp- 
tations which  beset  men  through  subsequent  life. 
Happy  is  it  for  any  youth  who  has  passed  through 
this  treacherous  period  of  life  and  entered  upon  his 
manhood  thus  unsullied,  untrammeled,  and  armed 
with  truth.  Such  hold  the  vantage  ground  on  the 
great  battle-field  of  life,  and  with  the  blessing  of  God 
are  doubly  sure  of  the  victory. 

With  such  advantages  of  position  and  with  such  ar- 
mor for  the  conflict,  early  manhood  dawned  upon  the 
subject  of  this  memoir. 


CHAPTER  IV 


THE     YOUNG     CHRISTIAN, 


THE  development  of  the  physical  and  mental 
powers  of  those  we  love  is  watched  with  interest 
and  tended  with  care.  Their  unfolding  and  maturing, 
their  strength  and  proper  discipline,  are  vastly  im- 
portant in  the  wear  and  tear  of  every  day,  and  in  all 
of  life's  work.  They  cannot  be  too  carefully  guarded 
for  their  legitimate  uses. 

But  far  above  these,  rises  in  importance  the  spirit- 
life — the  soul-culture — that  which  has  the  "promise 
of  the  life  that  now  is  and  of  that  which  is  to  come." 
As  love  and  obedience  to  God  is  more  honorable  than 
sinful  pleasures,  as  immortality  is  greater  than  life,  as 
the  glories  of  heaven  are  better  than  the  fading  joys  of 
earth,  so  does  the  soul's  interest  rise  in  importance 
above  the  material  or  mental  wants  of  man.  This, 
the  more  important  interest  in  the  life  experience  of 
Mr.  Ghalliss,  now  claims  our  attention. 

In  very  early  youth  his  mind  was  deeply  impressed 
on  the  subject  of  religion.     His  own  account  of  his 

62 


RHV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  63 

conversion  will  afford  us  the  clearest  view  of  this  im- 
portant event  of  his  life.  This  account  is  taken  in 
part  from  his  statement,  remembered  by  his  friends, 
and  in  part  from  a  written  statement  found  among  his 
papers,  of  which  he  says,  "My  object  in  penning  this 
narrative  is  to  illustrate  the  providence  and  special 
grace  of  God  to  the  unworthy." 

"  My  religious  impressions  were  of  quite  an  early 
date,  produced  by  the  early  instructions  of  my  fond 
mother,  so  early  that  I  cannot  remember  the  day 
when  I  did  not  pray.  Under  this  daily  habit  of 
prayer  I  became  very  self-righteous,  so  much  so,  that 
I  thanked  God  I  was  not  as  other  lads  of  mv  age 
were.  I  thought  I  was  fit  for  heaven  at  any  time,  but 
oh,  the  delusion  I  was  then  laboring  under !  I  thought 
I  was  rich  and  increased  in  goods  and  had  need  of 
nothing ;  not  knowing  I  was  poor  and  miserable  and 
blind  and  naked.  Under  this  delusion  of  mind,  I  did 
not  long  remain,  but  was  in  due  time  made  to  feel  the 
plague  of  my  own  heart,  and  my  danger  as  a  poor  lost 
sinner.  My  self-righteousness  was  terribly  spoiled  by 
a  sermon  preached  by  Rev.  J.  Sheppard  from  the 
words,  'And  whosoever  doth  not  bear  his  cross  and 
come  after  me  cannot  be  my  disciple.'  Testing  myself 
by  this  standard,  I  perceived  I  was  weighed  in  the 
balances  and  found  wanting.  I  saw  how  imperfect 
and  really  selfish  all  my  supposed  righteousness   was  ; 


64  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

how  unwilling  I  was  to  surrender  my  own  will  to 
Christ,  or  to  give  up  my  own  plans  and  pleasures  for 
his  sake,  or  to  make  any  real  sacrifice  for  his 
cause. 

"And  now  I  was  pressed  down  under  a  weight  of 
guilt,  and  went  mourning  all  the  day  long.  My  state 
of  mind  was  soon  discovered  by  my  employer.  Deacon 
Mulford.  He  embraced  an  early  opportunity  to  con- 
verse with  me  on  the  subject  of  my  soul's  eternal  sal- 
vation. He  said  to  me,  Mames,  are  you  troubled 
about  your  soul?'  And  when  I  answered  in  the 
affirmative,  he  took  me  alone,  and  pointed  me  to  'the 
Lamb  of  God,  who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world,' 
and  so  he  'taught  me  the  way  of  the  Lord  more  per- 
fectly,' and  commended  me  in  prayer  to  God,  who  is 
ever  ready  to  listen  to  the  prayers  of  his  people.  I 
have  great  cause  for  thankfulness  that  I  was  ever  put 
under  the  pious  influence  and  fervent  prayers  of  this 
good  man. 

"About  this  time  Deacon  Mulford  took  me  with 
him  to  the  Quarterly  Meeting  of  the  Cohansey 
Church,  held  at  Roadstown.  At  this  meeting  my  soul 
was  greatly  benefited  under  a  faithful  sermon  by  Rev. 
John  Peckworth,  of  Philadelphia,  preached  from  the 
words,  'Turn  ye  to  the  stronghold,  ye  prisoners  of 
hope.'  I  sat  in  the  gallery,  bowed  down,  feeling  that 
I  was  a  condemned  prisoner — justly  condemned.     But 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  65 

was  there  hope  ?  Whither  shoukl  I  flee  ?  When  the 
meeting  closed  my  eyes  followed  that  preacher  with  a 
longing  desire  that  he  would  come  and  speak  to  me, 
a  poor  broken-hearted  sinner.  But  he  knew  nothing 
of  my  distress,  and  in  my  great  despondency  I  felt 
like  saying,  'No  man  cares  for  my  soul.'  Filled  with 
deep  anxiety  I  went  to  unburden  my  heart  alone 
before  God  in  prayer.  I  made  my  way  across  the 
fields  to  Deacon  Sheppard's,  and  there,  beside  an  old 
hay  stack,  I  poured  out  my  heart  unto  God. 

"Thus  with  a  burdened  heart  I  continued  to  seek 
the  Lord  until  I  found  there  was  hope  even  for  'the 
chief  of  sinners,'  and  I  was  brought  to  rejoice  in  the 
liberty  of  God's  people.  I  saw  unknown  beauty  in 
God's  plan  of  salvation.  Christ  appeared  to  be  just 
such  a  Saviour  as  I  needed.  And  now,  with  trem- 
bling anxiety,  I  began  to  inquire,  'Lord,  what  wilt 
thou  have  me  to  do?'  I  knew  I  ought  to  confess 
Christ,  and  at  length  I  ventured  to  cast  all  my  care 
upon  the  Lord,  and  went  forward  for  baptism,  and 
told  the  people  of  God  'what  great  things  the  Lord 
had  done  for  me.'  The  Baptist  Church,  at  Salem,  then 
under  the  pastoral  care  of  the  beloved  Joseph  Shep- 
pard,  welcomed  me  into  her  fellowship,  after  my  bap- 
tism, which  occurred  on  the  19th  of  October,  1817." 

Thus,  before  he  Avas  quite  nineteen  years  old,  Mr. 
Challiss  professed  faith  in  Christ,  and  gave  himself  to 


66  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

the  people  of  God,  heneefortli  to  be  known  as  a  Chris- 
tian— with  obligations  "to  grow  in  grace  and  in  the 
knowledge  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour,  Jesus  Christ," 
and  to  work  in  the  vineyard  of  the  Lord,  as  fields  of 
labor  should  be  opened  for  him. 

In  those  days  there  were  comparatively  few  young 
men  in  the  churches,  and  a  shrinking  timidity  seemed 
to  characterize  them,  and  hold  them  back  from  active 
service.  There  were  but  few  Sunday  Schools,  and 
less  opportunity  than  now  for  the  young  men  to  de- 
velop their  gifts  and  grow  in  efficiency.  Perhaps  the 
fault  was  mainly  with  the  churches  in  not  pressing 
them  to  more  active  service.  Thus,  much  which  the 
early  love  to  Christ  and  the  enthusiasm  of  youth 
would  have  accomplished,  was  lost  to  the  cause,  and 
many  in  the  churches,  who  should  have  been  zealous 
and  efficient  workers,  had  no  aggressive  force. 

But  our  young  Christian  was  favored  with  a  judi- 
cious and  earnest  pastor,  who  found  work  for  him  to 
do,  and  put  him  at  it,  while  his  heart  was  all  aglow 
with  his  first  love  to  Christ.  He  not  only  encouraged 
him  to  take  part  in  social  meetings,  but  called  on  him 
to  lead  these  meetings,  and  also  appointed  meetings  in 
destitute  neighborhoods  to  be  conducted  by  him,  in 
which  he  was  expected  to  speak.  His  pastor  some- 
times gave  him  a  text  to  think  about  and  to  talk 
about  in  these  meetings,  that  his  gifts  and  experience 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  67 

might  be  promoted.  There  are  a  few  still  living  who 
look  back  to  these  meetings  as  seasons  of  interest  and 
enjo^aiient  to  their  own  souls,  and  remember  with 
what  earnestness  this  young  Christian  labored  for  his 
Saviour. 

As  Mr.  Challiss  advanced  in  his  Christian  course 
he  had  broader  and  clearer  views  of  the  way  of  life 
through  Christ  alone,  and  a  fuller  appreciation  of  the 
riches  of  that  grace  which  had  been  manifested  in  his 
behalf;  and  also  an  increasing  desire  that  all  might 
share  with  him  in  the  great  salvation.  Especially  did 
he  feel  interested  for  the  conversion  of  his  young  com- 
panions, some  of  whom,  with  grateful  hearts,  have  tes- 
tified to  his  zeal  and  fidelity  in  their  behalf.  He 
seemed  anxious,  from  the  very  first,  to  be  a  whole- 
hearted Christian,  and  ever  "to  have  a  conscience  void 
of  offence  toward  God  and  toward  men."  A  fellow- 
workman,  not  a  Christian  man,  but  disposed  to  call  in 
question  the  sincerity  of  every  body's  faith,  and  to 
exult  in  his  own  unbelief,  thus  testified  of  this  young 
man,  "He  was  a  remarkable  youth.  I  have  fre- 
quently come  upon  him  unexpectedly,  and  found  him 
kneeling  in  prayer.  He  seemed  so  sincere  and  earnest 
in  his  religion  and  so  consistent  withal,  that  I  cannot 
understand  it,  but  I  guess  he  must  be  a  Christian." 
Had  he  heard  this,  he  doubtless  would  have  said  in 

his  usual  spirit  of  humility,  "a  reluctant  compliment, 

6* 


68  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

not  to  me,  but  to  the  grace  of  God  which  has  made 
me  to  differ  from  others." 

An  aged  Christian  man,  still  living,  who  was  an 
intimate  friend  of  Mr.  Challiss  in  his  youth,  says  of 
him,  "I  was  his  senior  by  several  years,  but  he  pro- 
fessed Christ  before  I  did.  He  often  spoke  to  me  on 
the  subject  of  religion,  and  pointed  out  my  personal 
duty  and  danger.  Discovering  one  day  that  I  was 
anxious  about  my  soul,  he  proposed  and  urged  that  I 
should  go  and  open  my  mind  to  the  pastor.  I  hesi- 
tated, but  he  urged  the  more,  and  proposed  to  go  with 
me.  The  time  was  fixed  for  the  visit.  I  called  at  his 
mother's  house  for  him,  but  he  had  been  called  out. 
I  waited  some  time,  but  he  did  not  return.  His 
mother,  who  was  a  most  excellent  Christian,  and  who 
understood  my  anxieties  from  her  son,  talked  with  me 
and  pointed  me  to  Christ  as  my  only  refuge.  In  a 
few  days  after  I  met  young  Challiss  on  the  street. 
He  expressed  his  regret  that  he  was  absent  when  I 
called,  and  asked  if  I  would  not  go  with  him  at  some 
other  time.  I  answered  that  I  would.  Immediately 
he  replied,  'Well,  then,  come,  let  us  go  riow,  right 
away.'  I  was  hardly  prepared  for  so  prompt  action, 
and  hesitated,  but  he  urged  the  point,  and  I  con- 
ceded. We  went  to  the  pastor's,  and  for  the  first  time 
I  talked  as  an  anxious,  inquiring  soul,  with  a  minister 
of  the  gospel.     I   soon  found  peace  in  believing  in 


REV.  JA31ES  31.   CHALLISS.  69 

Christ,  and  after  a  few  months  was  baptized  and  nnited 
with  the  church.  This  was  more  than  forty  years 
ago.  We  were  both  young  then,  but  now  Brother 
Challiss  is  gone,  and  I  am  an  old  man.  Ahiiost  all  of 
that  time  have  passed  away,  and  I  must  soon  follow. 
It  seems  like  recalling  a  pleasant  dream  to  talk 
over  those  days.  Oh  yes!  I  knew  Brother  Challiss 
well,  as  a  boy  and  as  a  youth ;  and  knew  him  better  as 
a  young  Christian.  He  was  faithful  and  very  con- 
scientious in  all  his  Christian  duties,  and  his  relations 
with  the  world.  I  remember  the  day  and  place  when 
he  gave  up  'training.'  We  all  had  to  'train'  in  those 
days.  He  belonged  to  the  Tjight  Infantry,  which  was 
regarded  rather  as  the  'upper  ten'  of  our  soldiery. 
He  had  gone  out  with  his  company  to  the  parade- 
grounds.  It  was  about  the  time  he  commenced  hold- 
ing meetings  around.  It  occurred  to  him,  all  at  once, 
that  it  was  not  consistent  for  him  to  be  playing  soldier 
and  trying  to  preach  Christ.  Immediately  he  left  his 
company  and  returned  to  his  home,  and  I  never  saw 
him  in  soldier  clothes  after  that  day.  All  my  remem- 
brance of  him  is  pleasant  to  me  and  creditable  to 
him." 

The  young  disciple  in  his  early  experience  and  con- 
secration was  foreshadowing  the  future  Christian  man. 
He  made  the  interests  of  time  conform  to  the  claims  of 
religion,  and  found  his  highest  pleasure  in  the  service 
of  Christ.     He  early  learned  the  power  of  ])rayer,  the 


70  REV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

secret  of  the  Christian's  strength  and  successful  kibors. 
He  held  daily  communion  with  God  in  his  revealed 
word ;  not  by  casual  reading,  but  by  earnest  prayerful 
thought,  and  so  he  gathered  his  armor  for  the  great 
conflict  of  life,  and  prepared  to  "endure  hardness  as  a 
good  soldier  of  Jesus  Christ." 

He  entered  at  once  into  sympathy  with  his  fellow- 
disciples,  their  joys  and  sorrows,  their  trials  and 
triumphs.  He  endeavored  to  take  into  his  own  heart 
a  full  conception  of  the  value  of  the  immortal  soul, 
and  to  realize  the  condition  of  those  who  were  living 
out  of  Christ,  having  no  hope,  and  without  God  in  the 
world. 

He  made  it  a  principle  of  his  early  Christian  life  to 
heed  the  dictates  of  conscience  and  cheerfully  to  give 
up  matters  of  pleasure  to  the  claims  of  duty  and  Chris- 
tian consistency;  seeking  to  avoid  even  the  appearance 
of  evil.  And  by  faithful  and  earnest  labors,  his  heart 
was  kept  alive  to  the  claims  of  the  Christian  life  and 
the  joys  of  the  Christian's  faith. 

Were  these  only  the  ordinary  developments  of 
Christian  experience  and  only  in  the  ordinary  mea- 
sure, or  was  the  Master  moulding  him  specially  for  the 
greatest  work  of  the  Christian  life — preacliing  the 
gospel,  pointing  sinners  to  Christ,  and  feeding  the 
flock  of  God?  The  sequel  would  seem  to  show  that 
God  was  thus  early  preparing  him  for  a  special  work, 
the  ministry  of  the  wc^rd. 


CHAPTER   y. 

ENTERING     THE     MINISTRY. 

'^  Tl^HEN  Jesus  saw  the  multitudes,  scattered 
abroad  as  sheep  having  no  sliepherd,  he  was 
moved  with  compassion  on  them,  and  said  to  his  dis- 
ciples: The  harvest  truly  is  great,  but  the  laborers 
are  few :  pray  ye,  therefore,  the  Lord  of  the  harvest, 
that  he  would  send  forth  laborers  into  his  harvest." 
The  disciples  were  thus  taught  by  the  Saviour  of  men 
the  importance  of  the  Christian  ministry,  and  also 
where  they  must  look,  in  order  that  these  laborers 
should  be  supplied  according  to  the  demands  of  the 
harvest.  But  the  churches  of  Christ  have  often 
prayed  for  the  needed  supply  of  laborers  without  look- 
ing for  the  answer  to  their  request.  Much  talent  in 
the  churches  has  remained  buried  up,  because  in- 
fluences have  not  favored  its  development.  Many 
young  men  have  felt  called  to  preach  the  gospel  and 
have  panted  for  the  work ;  but  very  timid,  and  shrink- 
ing from  the  apparent  presumption  of  their  convic- 
tion, they  have  reluctantly  turned  to  worldly  pursuits. 

71 


72  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

They  have  accepted  the  failure  of  others  to  encourage 
them  to  this  work,  as  evidence  that  their  own  convic- 
tions were  not  well  founded,  perhaps  only  an  unnatural 
prompting  of  early  zeal,  which  would  soon  subside 
and  leave  them  satisfied  with  the  joys  of  a  passive 
Christian  life,  but  not  disposed  to  do  its  aggressive 
work.  Then  they  have  often  heard  it  suggested  that, 
"  Many  good  deacons  are  spoiled  by  making  poor 
ministers  of  them."  And  that,  "  If  God  calls  a  man 
to  preach,  he  will  open  the  way  for  him,  and  call 
people  to  hear  him."  Thdse,  and  like  sayings,  having 
only  enough  truth  in  them  to  conceal  their  fallacy, 
have  done  no  little  mischief  in  keeping  men  of  timid 
natures  and  sensitive  hearts  out  of  the  ministry,  and 
suggesting  as  a  compromise  that  they  may  be  equally 
useful  in  other  positions.  Surely  the  churches  have 
not  sufficiently  prayed  for  the  supply  of  laborers  or 
have  not  sufficiently  cared  for  the  answers  God  has 
proffered,  or  we  should  not  now,  so  near  the  close  of 
the  nineteenth  century  of  the  Christian  era,  find  the 
supply  so  inadequate  to  the  demands  of  the  waiting 
harvest. 

Mr.  Challiss  was  favored  with  a  pastor  who  was 
much  interested  in  the  improvement  of  the  young  men 
of  the  church,  and  encouraged  such  as  he  thought  God 
designed  for  the  ministry,  to  exercise  their  gifts  in 
that  direction.     He  soon  discovered  that  this  young 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  73 

man  had  talents  for  usefulness  which  ought  not  to  be 
buried  up  or  lost  to  the  cause.  To  develop  this 
talent,  the  pastor  urged  him  to  hold  meetings  in  the 
country  and  at  the  houses  of  the  members  of  the 
church,  and  that  at  these  meetings  he  should  read  the 
Scriptures  and  try  to  explain  their  teaching,  and  ex- 
hort the  people  in  the  name  of  Jesus — in  a  word,  he 
was  to  do  a  kind  of  informal  preaching.  After 
awhile  he  was  called  before  the  church  that  he  might 
be  heard  with  a  view  to  having  a  license  to  preach. 
This  position  was  a  very  trying  one  to  him.  He  had 
spoken  frequently  in  social  meetings,  but  the  infor- 
mality of  the  services  relieved  him  from  embarrassment, 
but  now  he  appears  before  the  church,  to  preach 
on  trial,  that  his  brethren  might  judge  of  his  fitness 
and  call  to  the  most  responsible  work  God  commits  to 
men,  the  preaching  of  the  gospel  of  Christ.  Before 
him  were  venerable  men  of  God,  whom  he  had 
revered  from  childhood;  at  whose  feet  he  had  de- 
lighted to  sit  and  learn  the  way  of  the  Lord  more  per- 
fectly ;  and  there,  too,  was  his  own  mother,  who,  with 
all  her  partiality  for  her  son,  had  freely  expressed  to 
him  her  doubts  of  his  ability  to  succeed ;  there  she 
was,  present  to  hear  him,  full  of  maternal  solicitude 
that  he  might  succeed  despite  her  fears ;  many,  also, 
of  his  young  companions  and  strangers,  hearing  of  the 


74  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

service  and  attracted  by  its  novelty,  were  there  to  hear 
this  young  man  try  to  preach. 

Many  a  brave  heart  has  quailed  before  less  formid- 
able difficulties,  and  it  was  not  strange  that  his  first 
elfort  was  a  signal  failure  in  the  estimation  of  most  of 
his  hearers ;  but  not  of  all.  He  was  much  troubled  at 
this  failure,  and  his  feelings  of  depression  were  deep- 
ened by  knowing  how  greatly  his  mother  was  morti- 
fied. As  they  walked  home  together  she  finally  said 
to  him,  "  Well,  Jimmy,  I  hope  you  will  never  try  to 
preach  again,  as  it  is  now  clear  you  will  not  succeed." 
This  was  the  severest  blow  to  his  oppressed  and  sensi- 
tive heart,  now  struggling  for  courage  to  do  what  he 
felt  was  God's  will.  But  he  was  more  anxious  to 
preach  the  gospel  than  he  was  to  succeed,  as  his 
mother  and  most  of  his  hearers  estimated  success.  He 
could  say,  "  For  necessity  is  laid  upon  me ;  yea,  woe  is 
unto  me  if  I  preach  not  the  gospel."  Then  there 
were  some,  of  whom  his  pastor  was  one,  who  did  not 
reo-ard  the  eifort  a  failure.  His  confusion  on  the  oc- 
casion  did  not  hide  from  them  his  talent  for  useful- 
ness, or  the  probability  that  he  was  a  chosen  vessel  of 
God  to  bear  words  of  salvation  to  the  people.  They 
encouraged  the  young  man  to  renew  his  effort,  as- 
suring him  that  success  often  was  not  attained  until 
men  were  educated  by  repeated  failures,  and  that 
apparent  failures  were  frequently  the  surest  promise 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  75 

of  ultimate  triumph.  No  oue  cau  estimate  how  much 
the  lesson  of  this  first  failure  g-five  strength  to  all  his 
ministry,  how  it  taught  him  never  to  presume  upon 
himself,  but  ever  lean  upon  God ;  thus  adding  to  him 
strength  by  the  very  consciousness  of  his  weakness. 

His  subsequent  efforts  were  more  encouraging  to 
himself,  quite  satisfactory  to  the  church  and  gratify- 
ing to  his  mother,  who  was  now  convinced  that  he 
was  in  the  path  of  duty  and  gave  him  her  sympathies 
and  prayers.  Mr.  Challiss  presents  the  following 
statement  in  reference  to  this  important  event  of  his 
life :  "  I  was  called  to  exercise  my  gifts  before  the 
church,  with  a  view  to  a  license,  on  May  19th,  1821. 
After  appearing  before  the  church  in  that  capacity  for 
several  different  times  the  church  unanimously  agreed 
to  give  me  a  license  to  preach  the  gospel.  This  was 
granted  on  June  24th,  1821.  I  entered  upon  this 
great  work  with  a  trembling  heart,  knowing,  as  I  did, 
my  own  insufficiency,  but  I  felt  that  the  Lord  was  my 
righteousness  and  strength." 

Now  bearing  the  greetings  of  the  church,  and  com- 
missioned by  her,  as  called  of  God,  "  To  preach  the 
gospel  of  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ  wherever  he  may 
have  a  call  in  divine  Providence,"  and  followed  by 
her  prayers,  he  enters  more  publicly  upon  the  work  of 
his  life.  Immediately  he  seeks  opportunities  for 
preaching  to  the  destitute.     "  Being  desirous  to  find 


76  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

some  door  open  among  the  destitute  where  I  might 
preach  Christ  crucified,  I  went  into  the  county  of 
Cape  May,  and  found  the  people  very  destitute  of  any 
one  to  preach  to  them.  Here  I  remained  about  four 
months  and  then  left,  much  against  the  wishes  of  the 
people,  in  order  to  seek  some  opportunity  of  im- 
proving my  education.  Having  had  very  little  oppor- 
tunity of  improving  my  mind  with  useful  knowledge, 
and  there  being  no  facilities  for  the  improvement  of 
young  men  then  in  theological  schools,  as  there  now 
are,  I  entered  upon  a  course  of  studies  with  Henry 
Holcomb,  D.  D.,  of  Philadelphia,  on  October  24th, 
1821.  But  here  my  object  was  defeated  entirely  on 
account  of  some  difficulties  then  existing  in  the  city, 
which  rendered  my  situation  so  wretched  that  I  soon 
saw  it  necessary  for  me  to  leave.  I  returned  home  to 
Salem  and  spent  the  winter  in  study  with  Eev.  Joseph 
Sheppard,  my  beloved  pastor.  This  was  chiefly  all 
the  opportunity  I  enjoyed  for  the  improvement  of  my 
mind  in  theological  knowledge.  With  this  very 
limited  preparation  for  the  sacred  office,  I  went  out 
the  following  spring  in  pursuit  of  a  field  of  labor." 

We  are  not  to  infer  that  this  young  preacher's 
knowledge  of  theology  was  as  limited  as  were  these 
opportunities  of  obtaining  it.  He  was  a  faithful 
student  of  the  Bible,  and  was  by  no  means  ignorant  of 
its    great    doctrines.     He    had    enjoyed    Bible    Class 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  77 

instruction  for  some  time  and  had  taught  some  in  the 
Sunday-school.  He  had  access  to  his  pastor's  library, 
and  his  advice  in  directing  his  course  of  reading. 
These  had  added  no  little  to  his  stock  of  knowledge 
before  he  entered  the  pastorate,  and  prej^ared  him 
better  to  prosecute  his  studies  after  he  was  settled  as 
pastor. 

At  one  time  before  he  entered  the  pastorate  his 
mind  was  quite  stirred  up  to  the  importance  of  a 
thorough  classical  and  theological  education.  After 
thinking  the  matter  over  he  packed  up  his  trunk  and 
started  for  Princeton,  then  the  great  educational 
centre  of  New  Jersey.  He  arrived  safely,  secured  a 
boarding-house  and  unpacked  his  trunk,  and  sat  down 
to  spend  the  evening  in  carefully  looking  over  the 
work  before  him.  He  thought  of  the  years  he  must 
spend  there  before  entering  upon  his  dearly  cherished 
work.  He  thought  of  the  many  fields  destitute  of  the 
gospel,  and  of  the  multitudes  dying  without  a  saving 
knowledge  of  Christ.  The  more  he  thought,  the  more 
his  heart  was  troubled.  He  could  not  sleep.  He 
spent  the  night  in  tears  and  in  prayer.  In  the  morn- 
ing he  repacked  his  trunk  and  started  to  seek  a  field 
of  labor.  He  seldom  alluded  to  this ;  perhaps  it  was 
not  right  perfectly  clear  to  his  own  mind  whether  he 
acted  wisely  or  not.  Those  who  knew  him  best  could 
not  doubt  that  he  acted  honestly,  and  in  the  fear  of 


78  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

God.  Perhaps  he  would  have  been  a  more  useful 
minister  of  the  gospel,  had  he  remained  for  years  at 
Princeton.  This  we  cannot  certainly  tell,  but  work 
for  Christ  was  the  moving  impulse  of  his  soul,  and  he 
is  off  in  search  of  a  field.  Where  and  how  he  found 
it,  we  will  leave  him  to  tell. 

"  Feeling  a  burning  desire  to  be  useful  among  the 
destitute,  I  left  Salem  early  in  the  spring  of  1822,  not 
knowing  whither  I  went,  to  find  if  possible  some 
church  in  need  of  a  young  and  zealous  preacher. 
After  I  had  wandered  about  from  place  to  place,  like 
my  Lord,  on  foot,  I  saw  in  looking  over  the  Minutes 
of  the  New  Jersey  Baptist  Association,  that  the  church 
at  Upper  Freehold  was  destitute  of  a  minister.  I 
inquired  of  Brother  Appleton  of  Nottingham  Square, 
where  I  was  then  stopping,  where  this  Upper  Free- 
hold was.  He  told  me  about  it,  and  how  I  might 
send  them  word  that  I  would  preach  for  them  on 
some  succeeding  Sunday.  As  the  Lord  would  have 
it,  a  Mr.  H.,  from  Imlaystown,  Upper  Freehold,  was 
just  then  passing  in  his  carriage,  by  whom  I  sent 
them  word,  that  the  Lord  willing,  I  would  preach  for 
them  on  the  first  Sunday  in  April. 

"  According  to  my  promise,  after  wandering  from 
church  to  church,  I  went  to  the  village  of  Imlays- 
town, and  was  directed  to  the  house  of  Mr.  E.  G., 
whose  wife  was  a  member  of  the  church,  and  the  only 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  79 

member  in  that  part  of  the  congregation.  On  inquiry, 
Sister  G.  informed  me  that  they  were  destitute  of 
Baptist  preaching,  that  a  Mr.  John  Cooper  of  Middle- 
town  had  been  supplying  the  church  once  in  two 
weeks,  but  that  now  they  had  no  one  to  preach  for 
them.  As  it  was  yet  two  days  before  the  Sunday,  I 
sought  an  opportunity  to  preach  in  the  village  before 
that  time.  There  was  a  school-house  where  they  held 
meetings  sometimes.  I  got  permission  to  occupy  the 
school-house,  and  Mrs.  G.  sent  her  little  black  girl 
round  to  tell  the  people  there  would  be  Baptist 
preaching  in  the  school-house  that  evening.  The 
little  black  girl  was  the  first  Baptist  bell  I  ever  had 
in  Imlaystown.  Mr.  G.  went  with  me  to  the  meeting. 
There  was  a  full  house,  and  I  preached  them  a  short 
sermon  with  all  my  youthful  zeal  and  energy.  After 
we  had  returned  to  Mr.  G.'s  house,  he  said  to  me, 
'Well,  young  man,  you  have  learned  one  thing.' 
'  Ah,  what  is  that  ?'  I  inquired.  '  To  quit  when  you 
are  done.' 

"  The  Lord's  Day  came,  and  it  was  their  Quarterly 
Meeting,  and  many  persons  were  there  expecting  Bro. 
Segar  from  Hightstown  to  supply  the  pulpit  that  day. 
He  requested  me  to  go  forward  and  preach ;  and  so  I 
consented,  and  the  Lord  was  with  me  of  a  truth. 
This  was  my  introduction  to  this  people,  who  learning 

that  I  was   not  engaged,  invited   me   to   visit   them 

7* 


80  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

again,  which  I  did  in  a  few  weeks  after.  At  this 
second  visit  I  remained  with  them  two  or  three 
weeks.  By  this  time  quite  an  affection  was  formed 
between  us.  A  meeting  of  the  congregation  was  held 
to  make  out  a  call  for  me  to  come  and  labor  with 
them  statedly.  As  the  church  was  small,  the  people 
in  general  united  in  extending  the  invitation,  and  as 
an  inducement  the  President  of  the  Board  of  Trustees, 
said  to  me,  '  Young  man,  if  you  will  come  and  stay 
with  this  people  six  months  I  will  see  that  you  have 
fifty  dollars.'  I  at  once  consented,  and  returned  to 
Salem  to  get  my  clothing  and  books,  and  was  soon  on 
my  first  field  of  stated  labor.  Just  about  this  time 
the  First  Church  at  Cape  May  sent  me  a  call  to 
become  their  minister,  whicli  I  could  not  accept,  being 
now  ])reviously  engaged." 

Before  introducing  the  young  pastor  we  pause  to 
notice  some  general  facts  and  impressions  in  reference 
to  the  period  of  his  life  embraced  in  this  chapter.  He 
early  engaged  in  labors  of  Christian  sympathy,  and 
ministrations  of  comfort  to  the  afflicted,  and  seemed  to 
grasp  the  promises  of  God  to  his  people  with  a  faith 
belonging  to  matured  Christian  experience.  The 
Rev.  Walter  B.  Gillette,  pastor  of  the  Seventh  Day 
Baptist  Church,  at  Shiloh,  N.  J.,  presents  the  follow- 
ing pleasant  reminiscence.  "  My  oldest  brother,  P. 
D.  Gillette,"  who  was  afterwards  a  very  useful  and 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  81 

devoted  Baptist  minister,  "  was  a  student,  living  and 
studying  Avith  Rev.  Joseph  Sheppard,  pastor  of  the 
Baptist  Church  in  Salem,  and  a  member  of  his  family, 
in  1820.  My  brother  was  taken  sick,  and  I  was  sent 
for  to  attend  him.  A  young  man  called  in  to  see 
him.  He  talked  with  him  with  affection  and  kind- 
ness. He  seemed  to  have  so  much  of  the  love  of 
God,  and  encouraged  my  brother  to  trust  in  God,  as- 
suring him  that  God's  designs  were  all  merciful  and 
just;  and  though  not  discernible  now,  yet  they  would 
be  in  the  future,  and  that  this  sickness,  though  mys- 
terious now,  would  be  for  his  good.  I  was  surprised 
to  hear  such  language  from  one  so  young.  After  he 
left,  my  brother  told  me  his  name  was  Challiss,  and 
that  he  was  an  apprentice  to  the  shoemaking  business, 
and  that  he  designed  to  enter  the  ministry.  Not  long 
after  that  time,  I  was  present  at  a  meeting  where  he 
was,  and  the  officiating  clergyman  called  on  him  to 
pray.  I  was  deeply  impressed  with  the  solemnity  and 
fervency  of  his  prayer.  Not  long  after  this  he  and 
my  brother  came  into  our  neighborhood,  and  an  ap- 
pointment was  made  for  preaching ;  the  people  came 
together,  and  Brother  Challiss  preached.  It  was  un- 
common in  those  days  to  hear  so  young  a  man  preach 
the  gospel  of  Christ." 

Rev.  George  Higgins,  recently  deceased,  gives  this 
reminiscence  of  this  period.     "  About  forty -eight  years 


82  REV.  JAMES  M.   C II A  I.  hiss 

ago  I  first  met  Brother  Challiss.  It  was  at  the  Satur- 
day evening  prayer  meeting  of  the  First  Baptist 
Church,  Philadelphia,  held  for  many  years  in  La 
Grange  Place,  adjoining  the  old  meeting-house.  My 
attention  was  arrested  by  the  singularly  ready,  earnest, 
and  fitting  manner  in  which  he  participated  in  the  ser- 
vices. So  social  was  his  nature  that  little  effort  was 
necessary  to  form  his  acquaintance,  and  secure  his  con- 
fidence. I  soon  learned  that  he  was  under  the  in- 
structions of  my  pastor,  Dr.  Holcomb,  with  a  view  to 
his  better  qualification  for  the  work  of  the  Christian 
ministry.     His  stay  in  the  city  was,  however,  short." 

He  was  very  earnest  in  preaching,  presenting  the 
truths  of  the  gospel  as  though  he  felt  them  with  all 
his  heart.  His  manner  awakened  the  interest  of  his 
hearers  and  left  impressions  upon  their  minds  which 
could  not  be  easily  shaken  off.  "  I  knew  him,"  says 
one,  "  when  I  was  a  youth  of  only  fifteen  years.  I 
was  at  that  time  a  lover  of  the  word  of  God.  I  heard 
him  preach  and  was  much  interested  in  the  sermon. 
I  never  forgot  one  of  the  hymns,  and  the  text,  and  ar- 
rangement of  his  sermon."  There  was  something  so 
impressive  in  his  manner,  so  much  of  zeal  and  sinceri- 
ty in  his  preaching  and  intercourse  with  the  people, 
that  his  early  labors  are  still  remembered  with  great 
interest  by  the  few  survivors  who  were  contemporary 
with  his  early  ministry.     When  more  than  forty  years 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  83 

fail  to  erase  from  the  memory  of  men  the  texts  and 
sermon  and  prayer  of  a  minister  of  Christ,  and  when 
these  are  remembered,  not  simply  as  facts  common  in 
life's  experience,  but  from  the  impressions  they  made 
upon  the  heart  of  the  casual  hearer,  we  may  safely 
conclude  that  there  was  something  both  in  the  manner 
and  matter  of  the  preacher,  which  was  acceptable  to 
God,  and  commended  him  as  the  Lord's  servant,  and 
the  truths  he  presented,  to  the  conscience  of  men. 

Mr.  Challiss'  personal  appearance,  at  the  time  he 
entered  the  ministry,  was  exceedingly  youthful.  His 
round,  smooth  face,  and  florid  complexion,  and  quick, 
sprightly  movements,  gave  him  quite  a  boyish  appear- 
ance, and  most  people  supposed  he  was  some  years 
younger  than  he  really  was.  He  had  just  entered  his 
twenty-fourth  year  when  he  first  visited  Upper  Free- 
hold, yet  his  appearance  was  so  youthful  that  many, 
at  first  sight,  supposed  he  was  yet  a  boy. 

On  his  first  Lord's  Day  morning  at  Upper  Free- 
hold, there  was  a  general  gathering  of  the  congrega- 
tion. It  was  the  Quarterly  Meeting,  and  Rev.  J. 
Segar  was  expected  to  preach.  He  was  already  pres- 
ent, and  had  gone  up  into  the  old  high  pulpit. 
Though  Mr.  Challiss  had  preached  on  the  previous 
Friday  evening,  near  the  village,  yet  many  of  the  con- 
gregation had  neither  seen  nor  heard  of  the  young 
preacher.     Presently  a  youthful-looking  stranger  en- 


84  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

ters  the  house,  and  ascends  the  pulpit  stairs.  The  in- 
quiry went  round,  "Who  is  that  boy,  and  why  does 
lie  go  into  the  pulpit  ?"  "  Oh,"  said  one,  "  I  guess  he 
came  with  Mr.  Segar,  and  is  going  in  the  pulpit  to 
lead  the  singing."  Great  was  their  surprise  when  he 
arose  to  lead  the  service,  and  was  introduced  by  "Mr. 
Segar  as  the  preacher  for  the  occasion. 

Thus,  with  a  Christian  experience  in  advance  of  his 
years:  with  a  love  for  Christ,  and  a  real  passion  for 
souls  that  make  work  in  the  Master's  vineyard  the  im- 
pulse of  his  own  heart ;  and  with  a  social  nature  adapt- 
ed to  gain  and  hold  marked  personal  influence ;  and  all 
these  qualities  heightened  in  the  estimation  of  others 
by  the  very  youthful  appearance  of  their  possessor, 
this  young  servant  of  Christ  enters  upon  the  responsi- 
ble duties  of  the  preacher  and  pastor.  Although  his 
literary  and  theological  acquirements  were  limited, 
yet,  even  in  these,  he  was  not  so  far  behind  the  young 
Baptist  ministers  of  his  day  as  we  would  suppose, 
but  these  other  qualities  were  so  fully  developed  as  to 
compensate  for  their  loss,  and  to  commend  him  to  the 
hearts  of  the  people.  He  started  in  his  pastoral  work 
with  advantages,  if  not  better,  certainly  fully  equal 
to  the  average  of  young  men  who  entered  the  Baptist 
ministry  in  the  Middle  States,  fifty  years  ago. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

HIS    FIRST    PASTORATE    COMMENCED. 

April,  \822—Sei)tember,  1823, 

THE  Upper  Freehold  Baptist  Church  was  named 
after  the  township  in  which  it  was  located.  Upper 
Freehold  Township,  is  the  sonth-western  township  of 
Monmouth  County,  New  Jersey. 

This  county  was  originally  settled  by  Dutch  and 
Scotch,  who  were  joined  by  a  considerable  body  of 
New  England  emigrants,  in  1664.  The  blending  of 
these  nationalities  was  marked  in  subsequent  genera- 
tions, and  gave  character  to  the  inhabitants.  The 
county  was  established  in  1675,  and  such  was  the  in- 
dustry and  general  thrift  of  tlie  inhabitants,  that  in 
1685  it  was  the  most  wealthy  county  in  the  entire 
province  and  paid  the  greatest  amount  of  tax.  The 
soil  is  generally  light,  and  a  considerable  portion  of  the 
middle  and  southern  parts  was  covered  with  pine 
forests.  But  marl  abounds  in  these  regions;  and 
land,  once  comparatively  valueless,  has  been  rendered 

very  productive.     The   county  has  had  a  fine  agricul- 

85  " 


86  REV.  JAMES  31.    CHALLISS. 

tural  development,  and  in  1822  abounded  with  farms 
in  a  high  state  of  cultivation. 

The  township  of  Upper  Freehold  contains  some  of 
the  finest  farm  land  in  the  county.  The  surface  is 
generally  level.  In  the  southern  part  the  soil  is 
sandy  and  covered,  originally,  with  pines ;  but  in  the 
centre  and  western  parts,  the  surface  is  gently  rolling 
with  good  natural  soil.  "There  are  excellent  farms  in 
the  township,  especially  on  a  strip  of  land,  called 
'Cream  Ridge,'  which  runs  centrally  across  it. 
In  1829  the  township  had  a  population  of  4521. 
There  were  several  little  villages  in  the  township,  but 
none  of  special  note.  Imlaystown,  which  was  the 
nearest  village  to  the  Baptist  meeting-house,  and  was 
the  residence  of  Mr.  Challiss,  "contained  a  grist  and 
saw  mill,  a  tannery,  one  tavern,  one  store,  a  wheel- 
wright and  smith  shop,  and  from  ten  to  fifteen  dwell- 
ings. The  country  around  was  gently  undulating, 
generally  well  cultivated  and  productive."  Such  was 
the  material  character  of  the  general  and  immediate 
fields  of  labor  in  which  this  young  pastor  begins  his 
life  work. 

Nor  was  this  field  without  some  historical  interest. 
The  inhabitants  of  this  region  suffered  greatly  during 
the  "  Revolutionary  War"  by  frequent  incursions  of 
royalists,  to  whom  the  county  was  a  fivorite  resort  for 
forage  and  plunder.     These  marauding  parties  were 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  87 

joined  by  refugees,  natives  of  the  county,  who  took 
up  arms  against  their  former  neighbors  and  friends. 
Families  were  often  divided,  different  members  taking 
opposite  sides,  and  often  engaged  in  terrible  conflicts 
of  blood  and  death.  The  loyal  citizens  suffered  such 
fearful  ravages  from  their  enemies  that  they  finally 
banded  together  for  self-protection,  entering  into 
solemn  covenant  to  hold  the  persons  and  projDcrty  of 
royalists  and  refugees  responsible  for  injury  done  to 
the  person  and  property  of  loyalists. 

In  this  county,  too,  was  fought  one  of  the  great 
battles  of  the  war.  The  British  army,  under  Sir 
Henry  Clinton,  was  retreating  from  Philadelphia  to 
New  York.  The  American  army,  commanded  by 
General  Washington,  came  up  with  them  near  Mon- 
mouth court-house,  and  on  June  28th,  1778,  was 
fought  the  "Battle  of  Monmouth."  The  encounter 
was  fiercely  severe.  The  day  was  terribly  hot,  and 
both  armies  suffered  much.  The  British  were  driven 
from  their  chosen  position  again  and  again.  The 
night  ended  the  conflict,  and  when  the  morning 
dawned  it  was  discovered  that  the  British  had  re- 
treated, leaving  their  dead  to  be  buried  by  the  Ameri- 
cans. 

The  Upper  Freehold  Baptist  Church  is  among  the 
oldest  churches  of  the  state.  Early  in  the  history  of 
Monmouth  County,  we  find  those  holding  the  views  of 


88  I^EV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

Baptists.  Probably  among  the  emigrants  from  New 
England,  who  came  about  1664,  were  a  number  of 
this  order,  seeking  freedom  from  the  intolerance  and 
persecution  which  was  then  raging  so  violently  against 
Baptists  in  New  England. 

Certainly,   about  this    time    meetings   were    com- 
menced  by  Baptists,  and   in   1688  the  first  Baptist 
Church  in  New  Jersey  was  organized  at  IMiddletown, 
Monmouth  County.     In    a  few  years  later,  we  find 
that  there  was  occasional  preaching  by  Baptist  minis- 
ters in  the  general  neighborhood  of  Upper  Freehold 
and    Crosswicks.     According   to   a    record    made   in 
1749,  in  the  minutes  of  the  Philadelphia  Baptist  Asso- 
ciation, it  appears  that,  "In  the  year  1739,  Mr.  John 
Coward  was  called   to  exercise  his  gifts  upon  trial, 
who  preached  at  Crosswicks,  and  still  does,  among  the 
brethren,  members  of  the  church  at  Middletown.     In 
the  year  1738,  Abel  Morgan,  from  the  Welsh  Tract, 
at  the  request  of  the  church  at  Middletown  came  to 
serve  them  in  the  gospel  ministry,  and  is  noAv  living. 
As  this  church  meets  in  two  distant  places,  viz.,  at 
Middletown  and  Crosswicks,  the  Lord's  Supper  is  ob- 
served in  each  place,  once  in  two  months  alternately, 
one  month  in  one  place  and  the  other  month  in  the 
other  place." 

How  long  this  order  of  things  continued  is  not  defi- 
nitely   known,  but    on    May   13th,  1766,  the    Upper 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  89 

Freehold  Church  was  constituted,  with  forty-three 
members,  most  of  whom  were  from  the  old  Middle- 
town  Church;  and  in  October  of  the  same  year  the 
church  was  received  into  the  Philadelphia  Baptist 
Association.  "It  was  first  called  Cross  wicks  from  the 
name  of  a  creek,  which  runs  through  the  neighbor- 
hood." It  appears  on  the  minutes  with  this  name  for 
nine  years.  Rev.  David  Jones  was  pastor  of  this 
body  for  the  first  nine  years  of  its  history.  During 
this  time  there  were  comparatively  few  changes.  The 
increase  only  about  compensated  for  the  decrease  by 
death  and  other  causes.  For  the  next  forty-five  years 
the  church  continued  very  much  in  the  same  general 
condition,  with  no  specially  marked  interests  and  with 
varying  prosperity.  About  half  of  this  time  they 
had  the  labors  of  a  pastor  or  stated  supply.  But 
sometimes  years  would  pass,  during  which  they  were 
without  the  labors  of  a  pastor  or  regular  preaching. 
At  times  the  cause  seemed  to  advance  with  slow, 
but  hopeful  progress,  and  they  were  not  without  some 
seasons  of  special  revival.  Then,  again,  it  would 
seem  to  decline,  and  seasons  of  darkness  and  discour- 
agement would  follow.  In  1785,  the  church  dis- 
missed thirty-two,  more  than  one-third  of  her  mem- 
bers, to  constitute  the  Jacobstown  Church.  At  no 
time  during  the  first  sixty  years  of  its  history  did  the 
membershij)  reach   one    hundred.     The    church    con- 


90  ^EV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

tinned  a  member  of  the  Philadelphia  Baptist  Associa- 
tion till  1813,  two  years  after  the  New  Jersey  Baptist 
Association  was  formed,  when  it  united  with  that 
body. 

For  several  years  before  Mr.  Challiss  became  pastor 
of  the  church,  they  had  depended  upon  supplies,  and 
for  the  two  previous  years  their  supplies  had  been 
quite  irregular.  As  a  consequence,  the  interests  of 
the  church  were  on  the  decline,  and  the  field  was  by 
no  means  inviting  to  one  seeking  a  pleasant  home. 
Although  the  church  at  that  time  numbered  eighty- 
four  members,  yet  these  were  scattered  over  a  large 
section,  living  remote  from  each  other,  and  Avere  so 
seldom  gathered  for  social  or  public  worship  that  they 
were  quite  inefficient. 

In  this  field  of  labor,  with  its  local  interests  and 
history,  its  general  character  and  present  moral  condi- 
tion, Mr.  Challiss  enters  upon  his  first  pastoral  charge. 
The  prospects  of  the  young  preacher  Avere  not  the 
most  flattering.  To  a  heart  less  earnest  and  sanguine, 
the  difficulties  in  the  way  were  sufficiently  formidable 
to  suo-sest  looking  further  for  a  field  of  labor.  But 
the  moving  impulse  with  this  young  man,  in  seeking 
a  settlement,  was  not  to  find  a  pleasant  home,  but  to 
work  for  Christ.  The  difficulties  of  this  field  were 
rather  indifference  and  want  of  culture  than  positive 
hostility  to  the  truths  of  the  gospel.     To  such  a  spirit 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  91 

as  his,  such  an  opportunity  for  work  gave  the  promise 
of  success.  To  such  a  spirit,  opportunity  and  ability 
are  the  only  bounds  of  labor;  and  the  opportunity 
will  not  be  long  wanting,  and  the  ability  will  be  se- 
verely tested  in  meeting  the  call  for  labor  thus  sought 
for  and  found. 

Hence,  with  all  that  was  unpromising  in  this  field, 
there  was  a  happy  fitness,  a  kind  of  providential  har- 
mony between  the  wants  of  the  field,  and  the  charac- 
ter of  the  laborer  appointed  for  its  cultivation. 

Mr.  Challiss  first  visited  Upper  Freehold  in  April, 
1822,  and  spent  a  few  days  among  the  people.  He 
preached  with  so  much  acceptance  to  them  that  he 
was  urged  to  visit  them  again.  On  his  second  visit, 
which  was  in  the  following  month,  he  remained  two 
or  three  weeks,  preaching  several  times,  at  the  raeet- 
ino'-house  and  school-houses,  and  also  on  some  funeral 

occasions. 

A  mutual  interest  and  affection  was  soon  felt  by 
both  the  people  and  the  young  preacher.  A  call  was 
cordially  extended  to  him  to  become  the  pastor  of  the 
flock,  and  as  cordially  accepted.  He  has  left  a  few 
lines  in  reference  to  this  event,  his  sense  of  responsi- 
bilty  and  his  views  of  the  field.  Though  this  account 
is  brief  and  general,  yet  it  is  not  without  interest. 

"  In  a  very  providential  way,  although  unknown  to 
myself,  I  was  led  to  visit  the  Upper  Freehold  Church, 


92  REV.  JAMES  M.   ailALLISS. 

Monmouth  County,  N.  J.  After  spending  two  Sun- 
days with  them,  on  my  second  visit,  preaching  the 
word,  they  presented  me  an  informal,  though  cordial 
invitation  to  come  and  preach  for  them  statedly. 
This  invitation  I  accepted  with  trembling,  and  con- 
sented to  enter  upon  the  work  at  once.  I  soon  left 
for  Salem,  to  get  my  little  chest,  containing  my 
clothes  and  books,  which  were  all  the  treasures  I  had 
in  the  world.  In  a  few  days  I  was  back  to  Borden- 
town  with  my  treasures,  but  then  my  trouble  was, 
how  to  get  my  chest  out  to  Upper  Freehold,  and 
where  to  take  it  I  did  not  know.  To  overcome  this 
twelve  miles  through  the  country,  I  started  afoot, 
for  there  was  no  one  to  meet  me  with  his  carriage  or 
invite  me  to  his  home.  I  got  to  Imlaystown,  and 
went  to  Mr.  B.  Hulse,  and  got  the  loan  of  his  horse 
and  wagon  to  go  back  to  Bordentown  after  my  chest. 
But  my  trouble  still  was.  Where  can  I  stop  with  it? 
Finally  I  ventured  to  take  my  little  all  to  Mr.  Enoch 
Coward's,  whose  kind-hearted  wife,  a  good  Presbyte- 
rian woman,  encouraged  me  to  stop  at  their  house  till 
I  could  find  a  place  to  board.  My  next  trouble  was 
to  find  some  one  to  receive  me  into  his  house  to  live. 
Finally,  by  the  kindness  of  some  young  ladies,  I  was 
introduced  to  the  family  of  Mr.  B.  Woodward,  the 
very  house  in  which  I  began  my  married  life,  and 
which  was  subsequently  owned  by  the  church,  as  a 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS.  93 

parsonage.  Thus,  not  without  some  tribulation,  I 
began  my  feeble  labors,  with  this,  then  a  very 
feeble  church, 

"  My  first  sermon  to  the  people  there,  on  entering 
upon  my  stated  labors,  was  preached  on  the  fifth  Sun- 
day of  June,  1822.  As  introductory  to  my  responsi- 
ble work  and  expressive  of  my  position  among  the 
people,  I  adopted  as  my  text  on  that  occasion  the  lan- 
guage of  the  apostle,  *  Unto  me,  who  am  the  least  of 
all  saints,  is  this  grace  given,  that  I  should  preach 
among  the  Gentiles  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ.' 

'^  The  church  at  that  time  was  in  great  weakness, 
having  had  no  settled  pastor  for  many  years.  They 
were  scattered,  and  as  a  feeble  flock  without  a  shep- 
herd's care.  There  were  two  good  old  deacons,  in 
humble  circumstances,  living  about  twelve  miles  from 
the  meeting-house,  and  some  ten  or  twelve  good  sis- 
ters, living  within  five  or  six  miles.  Most  of  these 
were  in  the  humbler  walks  of  life.  Very  often  I 
preached  when  there  was  not  a  male  member  in  the 
assembly.  But  these  few  could  well  be  called  the 
'  salt  of  the  earth.'  There  were  also  a  number  of  men 
and  women,  not  members  of  the  church,  who  were 
deeply  interested  in  the  welfare  of  the  church." 

Mr.  Challiss  at  once  identified  himself  fully  and 
heartily  with  this  people,  casting  his  lot  with  them  as 
a  fellow-member  of  this  household  of  faith. 


94  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS 

In  the  letter  of  dismission  to  this  body,  granted  to 
him  by  the  Salem  Baptist  Chnrch,  dated  June  2-id, 
1822,  and  signed  by  Joseph  Sheppard,  Pastor,  he  is 
thus  kindly  commended  to  their  regard  : 

"  Understanding  that  you  have  given  him  a  call  to 
preach  the  gospel  among  you,  it  is  needless  for  us  to 
say,  that  he  is  not  only  in  full  union  and  communion 
with  us,  but  has  ever  since  his  profession  walked  ac- 
cordingly, and  stands  high  in  our  esteem  and  affec- 
tion, as  a  young  brother  of  promise ;  and  we  cordially 
recommend  him  to  favor  and  respect.  May  the  Groat 
Head  of  the  Church  keep  him,  and  render  him  a 
blessing  to  you  and  you  to  him;  and  revive  his  cause 
among  you  and  all  our  churches." 

The  desire  of  this  young  pastor-elect  and  of  his 
mother  church,  that  his  labors  should  be  blest  to  the 
good  of  souls  and  the  glory  of  God,  was  soon  gratified 
in  part,  and  had  the  promise  of  a  fuller  realization. 
"  Very  soon,  with  the  blessing  of  God,  good  was 
accomplished,  and  the  results  became  manifest.  A 
marked  increase  of  interest  was  apparent  in  the 
congregation,  and  one  and  another  were  inquiring, 
'  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved,'  and  the  young  man's 
heart  was  made  glad  in  knowing  that  his  labors  were 
not  in  vain." 

The  New  Jersey  Baptist  Association  held  its 
annual      meeting,    in    September,    1822,    with     the 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  95 

Evesham  Church,  now  Marlton,  where  for  the  first 
time  Mr.  Challiss  met  his  ministering  brethren,  as  a 
fellow-laborer  in  the  ministry.  The  previous  year 
the  Upper  Freehold  Church  was  not  represented, 
either  by  delegates  or  letter  in  the  Association.  This 
year  their  young  pastor  was  sent  as  their  delegate, 
bearing  the  usual  form  of  letter  from  the  church  to 
that  body.  In  this  letter  is  found  the  following 
reference  to  their  condition  and  hopes  : 

"  Being  destitute  of  the  regular  means  of  grace,  the 
prospect  among  us  has  been  dull ;  but  at  present  it 
seems  a  little  brighter.  Since  your  last  session  the 
Lord,  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church,  has  been  pleased 
to  send  us  a  minister.  We  have  called  as  our  under 
Shepherd  our  beloved  brother  James  M.  Challiss,  from 
whom,  during  two  months  past,  we  have  heard  the 
word  of  eternal  life,  and  by  whose  instrumentality  we 
hope  the  little  flock  may  be  built  up  and  edified.  We 
trust  tliat  the  time  is  not  far  distant,  yea  the  set  time 
to  favor  Zion — when  the  church  shall  put  on  her 
beautiful  garments  and  appear  on  the  Lord's  side. 
Oh,  for  the  happy  time  when  converts  shall  become 
numerous  as  the  dew-drops  of  the  morning." 

The  experience  and  incidents  of  this  meeting  were 
always  held  in  vivid  remembrance  by  Mr.  Challiss, 
and  were  often  recalled  in  contrasting  the  men  and 
the   condition  of  the  Baptist   denomination   in    Ncm^ 


96  R^^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Jersey,  at   the   beginning   and   at   the   close    of   his 
ministry. 

In  after  years  he  often  entertained  his  friends  with 
an  account  of  liis  journey  to  this  association,  and  his 
feelings  of  distrust  and  diffidence  in  meeting  so  many 
pastors  and  delegates  from  the  churches.  It  appears 
that  some  one  loaned  him  a  horse,  "an  old  lame 
horse,"  on  which  he  rode  to  the  meeting.  He  thought 
of  himself  as  a  beardless,  ruddy,  round-faced  boy, 
exceedingly  diffident  and  inexperienced,  and  hardly 
knowing  what  he  should  do  or  say.  He  often  lived 
over  these  days,  and  recalled  the  various  incidents  and 
experience  of  the  way,  with  humorous  delineations  of 
the  strange  figure  he  fancied  he  must  have  presented 
in  his  journey  to  and  from  the  association  on  "the  old 
lame  horse." 

But  the  remembrance  of  this  meeting  had  its  seri- 
ous view.  Here  he  met  with  many  brethren  in  the 
ministry,  some  of  long  experience  and  great  usefulness, 
some  in  the  very  prime  of  active  life,  and  some,  like 
himself,  comparatively  young  and  inexperienced,  but 
all  engaged  in  the  solemn  and  honored  work  of 
preaching  "the  glorious  gospel  of  the  blessed  God." 
Here  was  Smalley  and  Boggs,  and  Segar  and  Shep- 
pard,  and  Rogers  and  Welsh,  and  Allison  and  Brooks, 
and  Sisty  and  Lynd,  and  Maylin  and  Kennard  and 
others,  men  whose  names  are  familiar  to  the  Baptists 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  97 

of  New  Jersey,  and  whose  labors  contributed  no  little 
to  the  prosperity  of  the  churches. 

He  felt  that  he  was  now  one  of  this  band  of 
workers,  to  share  with  them  in  the  toil  and  responsi- 
bility of  the  work,  and  also  in  the  rewards  of  the  har- 
vest. He  was  to  bear  his  part  in  carrying  out  the 
great  commission;  and,  if  faithful,  would,  when  the 
day  of  toil  was  ended,  receive  the  welcome  plaudit, 
"  Well  done,  good  and  faithful  servant,  enter  thou  into 
the  joy  of  thy  Lord." 

As  he  advanced  in  life,  when  he  recalled  these 
times  a  shadow  of  sadness  fell  across  the  sunshine  of 
those  days  of  cheerful  and  humorous  remembrance. 
Only  four  of  the  brethren  he  met  at  this  Association 
survived  him. 

After  laboring  with  the  Upper  Freehold  Church  for 
nearly  six  months  they  called  him  to  ordination.  It 
had  become  necessary  in  order  to  meet  all  the  demands 
upon  him  from  his  position  there,  that  he  should  be 
fully  inducted  to  the  pastoral  office ;  so  a  council  was 
invited  by  the  church  to  set  apart  their  young  minis- 
ter more  fully  for  his  work.  The  Rev.  Joseph  Shep- 
pard,  of  Salem,  his  old  pastor,  and  Rev.  John  Segar,  of 
Hightstown,  were  members  of  the  council.  After  due 
examination  into  his  Christian  experience,  call  to  the 
ministry,   views    of  doctrine  and    church    polity,   the 


98  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

council  i^roceeded  to  introduce  him  fully  into  the  scos- 
pel  ministry  by  solemn  ordination. 

His  ordination  occurred  December  7th,  1822. 
"  This/'  he  says,  "  was  a  solemn  day  to  me ;  I  was  led 
to  inquire,  'who  is  sufficient  for  these  things.'  But 
when  I  remembered  that  my  sufficiency  was  of  the 
Lord,  I  took  courage,  and  went  forward  in  duty. 
Thus,  fully  inducted  into  all  the  responsibilities  of  the 
pastoral  office,  I  continued  my  work  with  trembling 
solicitude,  and  with  humble  dependence  upon  divine 
aid  for  strength  to  do  all  that  my  Saviour  required 
of  me." 

He  had  looked  forward  to  his  ordination  with  great 
interest  and  not  without  some  anxiety  as  to  what 
would  be  the  results  of  his  examination.  He  desired 
to  be  fully  authorized  to  meet  all  tlie  duties  of  the 
ministry.  He  felt  that  his  ordination  would  increase 
his  responsibilities,  and  with  his  usual  self-distrust,  he 
doubted  his  qualifications  for  this  work.  But  now 
that  his  ministering  and  other  brethren,  delegated  by 
the  churches,  had,  in  solemn  council  convened,  de- 
clared that  they  were,  "by  sufficient  testimonials, 
fully  certified  of  his  moral  character,  real  piety, 
and  sound  knowledge  in  divine  things,  as  well  as 
ministerial  gifts  and  abilities,  whereof  we  had  other- 
wise due  knowledge,  we  did  therefore,  in  the  pre- 
sence of  the  church  and  a  full  assembly  met,  solemnly 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  99 

oi'dain  and  set  apart,  to  the  sacred  office  of  the  gosjiel 
ministry,  by  imposition  of  hands,  prayer,  and  other 
rituals  among  us  in  that  case  in  use,  our  worthy  and 
reverend  brother,  James  M.  Challiss,  whom  we  accor- 
dingly recommend  as  such  to  favor  and  respect,  and 
pray  that  the  Great  Head  of  the  Church  may  keep,  be 
with,  and  richly  bless,  and  render  him  a  blessing  to 
many  precious  souls."  -• 

With  this  expression  of  confidence  from  his 
brethren,  and  commendation  to  the  regard  of  all  men, 
and  with  this  full  authority  for  his  ministry,  he 
gradually  threw  off  the  distrust  and  diffidence  which 
had  so  often  embarrassed  him,  and  gained  confidence 
in  his  work  and  in  his  intercourse  with  his  fel- 
low-men. 

His  first  baptism  occurred  early  in  the  month  fol- 
lowing his  ordination,  and  was  regarded  by  him  as  an 
event  of  no  ordinary  interest.  In  reference  to  it,  he 
says,  "On  January  4th,  1823,  which  was  my  birth- 
day, I  had  the  privilege  of  baptizing,  for  the  first 
time,  one  willing  convert  in  the  likeness  of  the 
Saviour's  death.  This  was  a  great  day  to  me,  and  the 
event  greatly  encouraged  the  drooping  spirits  of  the 
feeble  church  and  their  young  pastor.  From  this  lit- 
tle beginning  much  good  has  arisen,  and  many  more 
subsequently  were  constrained  to  obey  Christ  in  the 
ordinance  of  baptism." 


100  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

The  young  pastor  grew  in  the  good  opinion  of  the 
community,  and  was  rapidly  rising  in  popular  favor. 
His  labors  were  acceptable,  and  wherever  he  preached 
there  was  good  attendance ;  flattering  attention  and 
words  complimentary  to  both  preacher  and  sermon 
were  often  heard.  Perhaps  these  were  sometimes  in- 
judicious, and  more  adapted  to  foster  vanity  in  the 
preacher  than  to  induce  careful  and  earnest  prepara- 
tion for  his  continued  work. 

Judicious  and  discriminating  words  of  sympathy, 
and  appreciation  of  those  who  labor  for  the  good  of 
others,  and  often  amid  great  discouragements,  will 
frequently  strengthen  their  arm  and  cheer  their  hearts 
and  quicken  their  zeal  to  continue  the  work.  Some- 
times the  want  of  proper  encouragement  and  occasional 
words  of  a  discriminating  appreciation  of  the  labors  of 
the  pastor  leaves  him  very  much  in  the  dark  as  to 
his  usefulness  among  his  people,  and  allows  doubts 
and  discouragements  to  grow  into  discontent,  until 
the  relation .  of  pastor  and  people  is  severed.  Then, 
for  the  first  time  perhaps,  the  pastor  finds,  with  great 
surprise,  how  tenderly  his  people  loved  him,  how 
greatly  they  enjoyed  his  pastoral  visits,  and  how  much 
they  were  profited  by  his  preaching !  A  good  pastor 
who  had  spent  more  than  ten  years  of  faithful  and 
unwearied  labors  with  his  people,  but  who  was  sick 
from  over-work  and  anxiety,  once  said  to  a  visiting 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  101 

brother-minister,  that  if  he  should  die,  it  would  be  a 
true  inscription  to  put  upon  his  tombstone,  "  Died  for 
want  of  sympathy." 

But  sometimes  the  want  of  discrimination  in  these 
words  of  commendation,  and  the  frequency  of  their 
repetition  amounts  to  mere  flattery,  which  may  so 
foster  self-conceit,  even  in  a  pastor,  in  reference  to 
his  abilities  and  plans,  as  to  rob  him  of  the  wiser 
counsels  of  others,  leaving  him  to  follow  his  own 
guidance  and  make  shipwreck  of  himself  and  of  the 
interest  committed  to  his  keeping. 

Our  young  preacher  was  not  without  danger  in  this 
direction.  All  men  were  speaking  well  of  him.  The 
voice  of  the  flatterer  was  heard.  Perhaps  his  own 
prudence  and  good  sense  would  have  saved  him  from 
all  harm;  but  his  careful  and  anxious  friends  were 
not  content  to  let  the  matter  rest  on  this  contingency, 
as  will  be  seen  from  the  following  extracts  of  a  letter 
written  to  him  by  his  old  pastor.  Rev.  J.  Sheppard, 
dated  January  20,  1823,  and  which  he  carefully 
preserved  and  doubtless  often  read. 

"  Your  good  mother  called  last  week,  and  left  your 
letter,  and  requested  me  to  answer  it.  You  appear  to 
be  highly  favored  in  providence.  Oh,  that  it  may 
continue.  And  should  it  not,  the  change  will  not  be 
in  God,  but  in  man.  You  may  think  the  fears  of 
your    friends    groundless,    and    their     counsel     and 


102  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

cautions  officious,  but  there  is  nothing  harder  for  a 
man  to  bear  than  prosperity.  The  reason  is,  because 
the  heart  of  man  is  usually  too  much  exalted,  and 
prosperity  tends  to  elate.  You  appear  to  have  com- 
menced your  labors  with  that  people,  I  will  not  say 
exactly  right,  but  in  a  way  that  God  has  and  may 
bless.  Be  convinced  of  good  and  solid  reasons  for 
changes  l)efore  you  deviate  materially,  and  wait  the 
Lord's  time  to  give  success.  Our  faith  must  be  tried, 
our  perseverance  tested,  our  attachment  to  the  cause 
of  Christ  and  the  good  of  souls  proved.  What  are 
ministers  good  for  till  proved?  "VVe  may  be  zealous 
and  active,  while  smiles  and  presents  and  praises  are 
tendered  us,  but  in  time  of  temptation  wither  away. 

"  You  are  now  preaching  to  the  same  people  from 
time  to  time,  and  without  reading  and  close  thinking 
there  will  be  sameness  in  your  prayers  and  sermons. 
Of  this  beware.  We  should  know  what  we  are  going 
to  say,  and  leave  off  Avhen  we  are  done.  We  ought 
to  look  ahead,  lay  our  plans  with  prudence  and 
forethought,  and  bar  all  avenues  to  difficulty ;  be 
careful  not  to  commit  ourselves,  or  put  it  in  the  power 
of  any  one  to  injure  us  if  disposed.  Human  friend- 
ships are  fickle,  and  our  warmest  friends  may  become 
our  bitterest  enemies.  .  .  .  Keep  in  the  gospel  track 
exactly,  conscientiously,  and  sacredly,  yea  even  till 
death.      Steadiness   and   uniformity,   consistency  and 


REV.  JAMES  M.  CIIALLISS.  103 

perseverance,  are  essential  to  success  in  every  great 
and  commendable  pursuit.  There  are  little  minds 
enough  for  little  objects  and  pursuits  of  this  world. 
Christians,  and  especially  Christian  ministers,  should 
aim  at,  pursue,  and  accomplish  if  possible  great  things. 
Swartz,  Brainard,  Carey,  and  Whitefield  had  the  right 
spirit.  May  the  mantle  of  Elijah  rest  upon  Elisha. 
I  pray  that  not  even  the  charge  of  levity  or  impru- 
dence may  ever  be  heard  against  you. 

"  Your  worthy  mother  is  very  anxious  indeed — 
rejoices  with  trembling.  You  have  many  friends  here 
who  wish  you  well,  and  hope  to  hear  that  you  make  a 
good  man,  a  good  Christian,  a  good  minister,  a  good 
pastor,  a  good  everything.  They  can  wish  nothing 
better.  Listen  to  the  advice  of  judicious  friends,  and 
learn  even  from  your  enemies." 

How  far  these  faithful  and  timely  suggestions  were 
heeded,  and  how  fully  the  anxious  desires  of  his 
mother  and  pastor  and  many  friends  were  realized,  is 
best  told  by  the  sequel  of  his  life  and  the  fragrance  of 
his  memory. 

Before  resuming  the  narrative  of  his  labors  at 
Upper  Freehold,  we  pause  to  notice,  what  he  regarded 
as  one  of  the  most  important  events  of  his  life — 
important  because  of  its  moulding  influence  on  his 
character  and  efficiency  as  a  man  and  Christian  minis- 
ter, and  because  of  the  comfort  and  joy  it  brought  to 

it* 


104  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

his  home  and  heart  all  along  his  life's  journey,  even 
till  he  closed  his  eyes  in  death.  He  had  been  labor- 
ing at  Upper  Freehold  more  than  a  year,  and  for 
several  months  had  been  fully  inducted  to  the  office  of 
pastor,  or  bishop  of  the  church.  In  reply  to  the 
bantering  of  his  friends  he  sometimes  playfully  said, 
"Yes,  I  know  that  I  still  lack  at  least  one  qualifica- 
tion for  the  office  of  a  bishop — a  bishop  must  be  the 
husband  of  one  wife,  and  I  of  course,  must  respect 
this  apostolic  order." 

He  was  married  August  23d,  1823.  In  allusion  to 
this  event,  and  to  the  family  of  his  wife  he  says, 

"The  next  particular  and  important  event  of  my 
life  was  my  marriage  to  Miss  Lydia  Johnson, 
daughter  of  Deacon  James  Johnson  of  Salem,  N.  J. 
This  lady  has  proved  to  me  a  rich  blessing,  a  faithful, 
pious  wife,  an  affectionate,  managing,  kind-hearted 
mother  to  our  children — Joseph,  William,  Luther, 
George,  and  Emma. 

"  Her  father,  Mr.  James  Johnson,  was  born  in 
Pittsgrove,  Salem  County,  N.  J.  He  chose  as  his 
companion.  Miss  Christianna  Swing,  of  the  same 
county.  He  commenced  business  as  a  farmer  in  early 
life  and  in  humble  circumstances.  But  by  careful 
perseverance  in  business  he  rose  to  be  one  of  the  first 
farmers  of  the  county.  After  leaving  Pittsgrove  he 
spent    some   years    in    Mannington,    but    eventually 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CI/ALLISS.  105 

removed  to  Penn's  Neck,  where  he  purchased  a  valu- 
able farm,  on  which  he  lived  for  many  years, 
increasing  in  wealth  and  influence. 

"  These  revered  parents  were  blessed  with  a  large 
family  of  children,  ten  of  whom  lived  to  settle  in  life. 
The  youngest  of  these  but  one,  was  Lydia,  now 
my  bosom  companion.  For  many  years  these 
parents  were  examples  of  piety  and  devotion.  They 
connected  themselves  first  with  the  Presbyterian 
Church ;  but  after  mature  reflection  they  put  on 
Christ  by  baptism,  and  united  with  the  Baptist 
Church  in  Salem, 

"Mr.  Johnson  was  soon  elected  to  the  office  of  Dea- 
con in  that  church,  and  President  of  their  Board  of 
Trustees.  Both  these  parents  fought  the  good  fight, 
and  finished  their  course  with  joy.  Mrs.  Johnson 
died  in  the  year  1825,  in  the  sixty-first  year  of  her 
age,  and  Deacon  Johnson  in  1837,  in  the  eightieth 
year  of  his  useful  life." 

Mrs.  Challiss  was  born  February  3,  1803.  She 
was  fiivored  with  the  careful  training  of  these  earnest 
Christian  parents,  and  the  hallowed  influence  of  a 
lovely  Christian  home,  where  strict  filial  obedience, 
and  habits  of  industry  and  economy  were  beautifully 
blended  with  parental  indulgence,  refinement,  and 
comparative  affluence.  The  moulding  influence  of 
these  privileges  was  not  lost  upon  the  youngest  daugh- 


106  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

ter  of  the  household.  She  was  naturally  amiable,  and 
thoughtful  of  others,  and  ever  self-sacrificing  to  the 
comfort  and  pleasures  of  those  she  loved.  She  readily 
acquired  those  habits  of  industry  and  economy,  and 
the  refinement  which  so  marked  her  father's  family. 
In  early  life  she  was  frequently  and  deeply  impressed 
with  her  personal  need  of  the  Saviour.  She  finally, 
while  yet  in  her  youth,  found  peace  in  believing  in 
Christ,  and  joyfully  confessed  him  before  the  world. 
She  was  baptized  December  17,  1820,  and  received 
into  the  fellowship  of  the  First  Baptist  Church, 
Salem,  N.  J. 

Thus  she  grew  up  to  maturity,  endowed  with  the 
graces  of  true  womanly  Christian  character,  and  re- 
markably fitted  for  the  position  assigned  her  by 
Providence  as  a  pastor's  wife.  She  was  far-sighted 
and  frugal  in  managing  their  domestic  aifairs,  and  in 
using  their  limited  resources  to  the  best  advantage; 
ever  giving  to  their  home  an  air  of  ease,  comfort,  and 
refinement,  which  made  it  home-like  and  pleasant  to 
the  humblest  disciple,  and  commended  it  to  the  ad- 
miration of  the  affluent,  and  even  the  fastidious. 

Mr.  Challiss  frequently  alluded,  in  terms  of  praise, 
to  the  bountiful  manner  in  which  the  Upper  Freehold 
people  supplied  the  temporal  wants  of  his  family ;  yet 
it  is  true  that  their  early  married  life  was  not  without 
a  struggle  to  keep  their  wants   within   their  means: 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  107 

not  that  their  wants  were  great,  but  that  their 
means  were  so  limited.  At  the  time  of  his  ordination 
a  written  contract  was  made  between  Mr.  Challiss  and 
the  church,  from  which  are  quoted  a  few  lines : 

"  Be  it  remembered,  that  on  the  7th  day  of  De- 
cember, A.  D.,  1822,  the  following  agreement  was  en- 
tered into  between  the  Rev.  James  M.  Challiss  on  the 
one  part,  and  the  Trustees  of  the  Church  and  congre- 
gation of  Upper  Freehold,  on  the  other  part,  viz : 
The  said  Mr.  Challiss  agrees  to  become  the  pastor,  or 
minister,  of  said  church,  to  execute  all  the  duties  a 
minister  ought  to  perform  in  a  church — preach  all 
funeral  sermons  that  he  may  be  called  upon  to  preach 
for  said  church  and  congregation — preach  twice  on 
the  Lord's  Day — visit  the  church  and  congregation 
when  convenient,  and  not  unnecessarily  absent  him- 
self from  the  service.  .  .  .  The  said  church  and 
their  trustees,  as  a  compensation  for  his  services,  and 
in  order  to  enable  the  said  Mr.  Challiss  to  perform  the 
aforesaid  duties,  do  agree  to  give  him  yearly.  One 
Hundred  Dollars,  arising  from  the  church  fund,  and 
with  this,  whatever  the  church,  by  a  diligent  commit- 
tee, whom  they  shall  appoint,  may  be  able  to  raise  by 
subscription." 

This  agreement  was  duly  signed  by  Mr.  Challiss  ^ 
and,  on   behalf  of  the   church,  by  the  deacons  and 


108  R^V.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

trustees,  and  also  by  members  of  the  ordaining  coun- 
cil, as  witnesses. 

For  some  reason  this  stipulated  sum  was  not  ad- 
hered to,  but  there  was  another  understanding  be- 
tween Mr.  Challiss  and  the  trustees,  by  which  he  was 
to  have  fifty  dollars  annually,  and  the  amount  that 
should  be  raised  by  subscription.  In  alluding  to  this 
he  says :  "  The  above  fifty  dollars  was  the  only  stipu- 
lated sum  I  had  for  ten  years,  and  yet  the  cause  pros- 
pered and  the  people  supplied  my  wants  most  bounti- 
fully." He  often  said :  "  My  ministering  brethren 
around  think  I  get  nO  salary,  and  yet  I  get  more  sal- 
ary than  any  of  them."  These  voluntary  offerings 
furnished  some  evidence  of  how  much  he  was  es- 
teemed for  his  work's  sake. 

Subsequently  he  became  satisfied  that  the  better  in- 
terests of  the  church  required  a  different  line  of  finan- 
cial policy ;  and,  therefore,  he  proposed  that  a  regular, 
stated  amount  should  be  raised  for  pastoral  support. 
The  people  would  have  preferred  the  old  way,  and 
to  him  this  was  the  greater  gain.  But  at  his  ur- 
gent request  they  reluctantly  agreed.  This  change 
occurred  in  November,  1832,  when  the  church 
stipulated  to  pay  him  a  salary  of  four  hundred  dollars 
a  year.  But  this  bountiful  supply  of  his  temporal 
wants,  for  which  he  so  often  complimented  the  people 
of  his  first  charge,  was  not  without  his  own  earnest 


REV.  JAMBS  31.   CIIALLISS.  109 

co-operation  and  the  carefnl  economy  of  his  prudent 
wife,  who  managed  his  domestic  affairs.  And  there 
were  times,  in  the  earlier  years  of  his  ministry  here, 
when  every  effort  of  husband  and  wife  were  necessary 
to  meet  their  pecuniary  wants.  At  times  we  find  him 
teaching  school,  and  always  carefully  cultivating  the 
ground  belonging  to  his  residence,  and  doing  what- 
ever he  consistently  could  to  add  a  little  to  their  in- 
come or  lessen  their  expenses.  He  always  was  careful 
to  keep  his  pecuniary  obligations  clearly  within  his 
resources,  and  save  himself  and  the  cause  from  the 
embarrassment  and  reproach  of  accumulating  and  dis- 
honored obligations.  To  do  this  and  meet  the  every- 
day wants  of  an  increasing  family  and  keep  home 
pleasant  and  inviting,  required  not  a  little  prudence 
in  using  to  the  best  advantage  their  limited  resources. 
One  who  knew  well  their  experience  of  this  period 
says :  ""  These  early  days  of  his  ministry  were  some- 
times trying  ones  pecuniarily.  By  teaching  school 
and  cultivating  his  few  acres  of  land  he  was  enabled 
to  supply  those  things  which  could  not  be  furnished 
by  his  parishioners.  This  interfered  greatly  with  the 
time  he  really  needed  for  study  and  jireparation  for 
the  pulpit.  But  even  with  this  help  the  most  careful 
economy  was  required  in  order  that  he  should  keep 
clear  of  embarrassment.      Much  credit  is  due  to  his 


110  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

faithfiil  companion  in  the  success  which  attended  him 
in  this  matter  also  in  the  general  Mork." 

INIr.  Challiss  always  felt  that  the  Upper  Freehold 
people  were  generous  in  the  support  they  gave  him. 
But  they  were  few  in  number  when  he  began  his 
work  there,  and  of  comparatively  limited  means.  As 
they  increased  in  strength  his  wants  were  supplied 
more  fully,  and  during  the  latter  part  of  his  pastorate 
he  felt  that  he  was  well  supported,  and  gathered 
about  his  home  many  comforts. 

Mrs.  Challiss,  as  a  mother,  can  be  fully  estimated 
only  by  those  who  knew  her  as  mother,  and  enjoyed 
her  constant  care  and  love.  In  her  relations  to  her 
children,  she  lived  not  for  herself  but  for  them, — ever 
self-sacrificing,  and  desiring  their  highest  temporal 
and  spiritual  good.  But  she  was  no  less  the  anxious 
and  earnest  helper  in  the  great  work  of  her  husband's 
life,  than  the  prudent  wife  and  the  faithful  mother. 
She  was  ever  anxious  for  the  prosperity  of  the 
church,  and  earnest  in  doing  what  she  could  to  pro- 
mote its  interests.  Her  heart  was  in  living  sympathy 
with  all  the  interests  of  the  church  of  Christ,  and 
with  the  struggles  and  triumphs  of  individual  Chris- 
tian experience  Where  sickness  or  sorrow  were  press- 
ino-  hard,  her  words  of  cheer  and  consolation,  and  her 
efficient  help,  were  freely  rendered.  She  frequently 
accompanied   her   husband   in    his    missionary    labors 


igU. 


cu 


RF.V.  JAiMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  \\\ 

among  the  destitute,  and  his  pastoral  visits  among 
their  own  people, — not  as  a  mere  interested  s2)ectator, 
but  cheerfully  rendering  whatever  services  she  could 
consistently  perform. 

She  was  especially  careful  of  all  her  husband's  wants 
and  comforts,  believing  that  thus  she  enabled  him  bet- 
ter to   perform    his  arduous  work.      Returning  from 
his  labors,  weary  and  anxious,  the  choicest  comforts 
and  warmest  sympathies  which  could  be  proffered  l)y 
a  tenderly  considerate  and   loving  wife  ever  awaited 
this  pastor.      Indeed,  such  was  her  care,  in  reference 
to  those  wants  and  comforts  which  contribute  so  much 
to  life's  enjoyment,  that  for  these  he  looked  to  her 
with  almost  childlike  dependence.     In  the  latter  years 
of  his  life  it  was  often  remarked  by  intimate  friends  of 
the  family :  "  How  could  Mr.  Challiss  live  without  his 
wife  ?     How  could  he  endure  the  loss  of  her  compan- 
ionship and   kind  ministrations?"      God   has    solved 
this  question  by  removing  the  husband  first,  the  more 
dependent  in  the  mutual  relations,  and  giving  him  a 
home  where,  in   the  perfect  enjoyment  provided,  the 
wants  and  comforts  and  companionship  of  earth  are 
not  needed. 

Mrs.  Challiss  was  left,  but  not  without  the  sustain- 
ing promise,  that  God  will  be  a  husband  to  the 
widow,  and  that  his  strength   shall  be  equal  to   her 

day.     She  still  lives,  supj)orted  by  divine  grace ;  and 
10 


112  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

comforted  in  her  bereavement  by  the  remembrance  of 
her  husband's  useful  life  and  triumphant  death,  and 
by  the  anxious  care  and  love  of  her  children. 
Clothed  with  the  grace  and  dignity  of  a  Christian 
matron,  she  mingles  with  her  children  and  grand-chil- 
dren, and  with  a  loving  heart  seeks  to  cheer  them  on 
in  life's  duties,  and  mould  and  mature  them  for  a  per- 
fect reunion  of  the  family  in  heaven.  Thus  she  waits 
till  Jesus  shall  bid  her  join  her  husband  : 

"  In  that  pure  home  of  tearless  joy 
Where  parted  friends  shall  meet, 
With  smiles  of  love  that  never  fade, 
And  blessedness  complete. 

"  There  sad  adieus  are  sounds  unknown ; 
Death  frowns  not  on  that  scene, 
But  life  and  glorious  beauty  shine, 
Untroubled  and  serene." 


CHAPTER   VII. 

JACOBSTOWN  AND   FREEHOLD.      AT  WORK   ON  THE   OUTPOSTS. 

THE  Jacobstown  Church  was  the  nearest  Baptist 
church  on  the  south,  to  Upper  Freehold.  Jacobs - 
town  was  a  little  village  in  Burlington  County,  very 
much  like  Imlaystown,  and  about  nine  miles  from  it. 
It  is  surrounded  by  fine  farming  lands,  which  were 
occupied  years  ago  by  thrifty,  well-to-do  farmers. 

The  Baptist  Church  there  was  constituted  in  1785. 
Most  of  the  constituent  members  were  dismissed  from 
the  Upper  Freehold  Church  for  the  purpose  of  organ- 
izing this  body.  It  was  admitted  into  the  Philadel- 
phia Association  in  1786,  with  forty-four  members. 
"  Being  sound  in  faith  and  regular  in  practice,  it  was 
freely  admitted  into  the  union  of  the  Association." 
Burgiss  Allison,  D.  D.,  then  a  young  man,  just  from 
Rhode  Island  College,  became  the  pastor  of  this 
church  in  1786,  and  sustained  that  relation  for  twenty- 
seven  years.  During  most  of  this  time  he  also  taught 
a  classical  school.  The  early  growth  of  the  church 
was  very  gradual.     In  1811,  when  the  church  became 

113 


114  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

one  of  the  constituent  churches  of  the  New  Jersey 
Baptist  Association,  the  membership  had  only  in- 
creased to  seventy-two,  which  was  the  largest  number 
of  members  at  any  time  during  the  first  fifty-three 
years  of  its  history. 

From  1811  the  interests  of  the  church  seemed  to 
decline  gradually,  till,  on  May,  1823,  the  total  mem- 
bership was  only  twenty-six.  For  more  than  five 
years  previous  to  this  time  the  church  had  been  with- 
out a  pastor  or  stated  supply,  and  the  Baptist  cause 
there  and  in  all  that  region  of  the  country  w^as  in  a 
low  state,  and  the  few  scattered  brethren  were  much 
discouraged. 

Mr.  Challiss  had  been  repeatedly  solicited  to  come 
over  and  help  this  little  band  of  struggling  but  almost 
disheartened  disciples.  He  finally  acceded  to  their 
requast,  as  will  be  seen  from  his  own  record  of  this 
engagement.  "Soon  after  my  ordination,  the  neigh- 
boring church  at  Jacobstown,  being  destitute  of  any 
one  to  preach  for  them,  urged  the  request  that  I  should 
supply  their  pulpit  once  in  each  month.  They  gave 
me  a  call  to  this  end,  which,  with  the  consent  of  the 
Upper  Freehold  Church,  I  accepted,  and  commenced 
preaching  for  them  on  the  third  Lord's  Day  in  May, 
1823.  I  continued  to  supply  them  thus  for  several 
years,  until  from  a  very  feeble  band  they  increased  to 
considerable  strength." 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  115 

When  he  commenced  this  work  it  was  with  no 
sanguine  expectations.  While  he  thought  that  this 
arrangement  was  the  best  that  could  be  made  for  them 
at  that  time,  yet  he  felt  that  he  could  not  hope  for 
much  from  such  unfrequent  labors.  He  was  accus- 
tomed to  say,  "I  cannot  expect  to  accomplish  much 
good  under  these  circumstances.  The  intervals  of 
labor  are  too  long.  Why  the  swallows  come  and 
build  their  nests  in  the  meeting-house,  and  lay  their 
eggs  and  hatch  their  young,  with  no  one  to  drive  them 
away  or  disturb  them  in  their  work,  and  when  I  come 
again,  behold,  there  is  a  nest  of  unclean  birds  almost 
ready  to  fly  around  and  reproduce  their  kind.  The 
enemy  of  souls  is  no  less  active  there  than  these, 
and  but  little  more  disturbed  in  his  work.  I  can 
never  tell  how  many  new  nests  of  sin  I  shall  find 
built,  or  how  many  messengers  of  Satan  I  shall  find 
unfledged  or  on  the  wing,  when  I  return  after  my  long 
months  of  absence." 

But  despite  these  discouraging  views  and  the  seem- 
ing hopelessness  of  this  kind  of  labor,  he  entered  upon 
the  work  with  a  will,  endeavoring  to  do  what  he  could 
with  all  his  heart.  He  found  a  few  faithful  co-workers 
among  this  little  band;  nor  were  his  labors  long  with- 
out some  encouraging  results.  He  was  accustomed  to 
go  over  to  Jacobstown  on  Saturday  afternoon  and  hold 

a  meeting  there  in  the  evening.     On  Sunday  forenoon 

10* 


116  REV.  JAMES  M.   ClIALLISS. 

he  preached  in  their  meeting-house,  and  in  the  after- 
noon, at  one  of  the  out-stations, —  New  Egypt,  Cooks- 
town,  or  Recklesstown, — and  then  return  homeward 
as  far  as  Cream  Ridge,  where  he  would  preach  again 
in  the  evening,  and  stop  for  the  night.  On  Monday 
he  would  make  some  calls  in  that  neighborhood  or 
along  his  road,  and  reach  home  sometime  during  the 
day.  At  other  times  he  would  spend  a  day  or  more 
in  the  vicinity  of  Jacobstown,  perhaps  officiating  at  a 
funeral  or  wedding,  and  making  pastoral  visits  among 
that  people. 

Thus  he  continued  to  labor  from  year  to  year. 
Almost  from  the  very  beginning  of  his  labors  on  this 
field  there  was  evidence  of  returning  health  and 
growth  to  the  church.  In  the  letter  of  the  church  to 
the  Association  in  September,  182f3,  they  say,  "The 
ordinance  of  the  Lord's  Supper  is  regularly  admin- 
istered to  us  by  our  much  respected  Brother  Challiss, 
who  has  engaged  to  be  with  us  and  supply  us  once 
a  month."  In  1824,  their  letter  said,  "We  have 
abundant  cause  of  thankfulness  for  the  harmony  which 
pervades  our  church.  Our  Brother  Challiss  continues 
to  be  with  us  once  a  month,  and  we  have  the  pleasure 
of  saying  that  his  labors  are  not  only  acceptable  to  the 
church,  but  to  a  large  and  attentive  congregation." 
Again,  in  1827,  they  wrote,  "Our  much  beloved 
Brother   Challiss,  whose   labors   the  Lord   continues 


REV.  JAMES  M.   C'lIALLISS.  117 

to  bless,  is  still  laboring  among  us."  During  the 
years  1826  and  1827  the  church  enjoyed  seasons  of 
special  revival,  and  in  1828  they  wrote  to  the  Associa- 
tion, "The  good  work  of  the  I-iord  is  still  going  on 
within  the  congregation.  A  Sunday-school  has  been 
recently  instituted  with  pleasing  prospects."  In  1831, 
they  wrote,  "Brother  Challiss,  whose  labors  have  been 
so  greatly  blest,  is  still  supplying  us  once  a  month. 
A  few  have  been  added  by  baptism,  and  there  are 
others  among  us  who  appear  to  be  seeking  God  with 
full  purpose  of  heart."  Again,  in  1832,  their  letter 
says,  "  Brother  Challiss  still  continues  to  labor  with 
us,  and  his  labors  are  not  in  vain  in  the  Lord.  The 
prospects  of  the  church  are  encouraging,  and  we  are 
enjoying  special  indications  of  God's  presence.  Our 
Sunday-school  is  flourishing,  and  our  prospects  are 
pleasing  in  every  respect." 

He  continued  his  labors  here  till  August,  1833, 
when  he  relinquished  this  field  on  account,  in  part, 
of  the  pressure  of  labor  at  Upper  Freehold,  and  in 
part,  because  this  people  had  increased  sufficiently  to 
warrant  them  in  supporting  a  pastor  themselves. 
He  had  preached  for  them  thus  for  ten  years.  Every 
year  had  witnessed  some  additions  to  the  church  by 
baptism.  He  had  baptized  fifty-six  during  this  time, 
and  left  them  with  a  membership  of  sixty-eight, 
nearly  three  times  as  many  as  they  had  when  he  com- 


118  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

menced  his  labors  with  them.  This  church  soon  after 
obtained  a  pastor,  and  has  continued,  with  very  little 
interruption,  to  enjoy  pastoral  care  from  that  time  to 
the  present.  It  is  now  one  of  the  large  churches  of 
the  Association,  having,  in  1868,  a  membership  of 
255,  and  two  Sunday-schools  with  188  scholars. 

But  few  remain  who  were  contemporary  with  him 
while  laboring  at  Jacobstown,  There  are  a  very  few 
still  lingering  with  this  generation,  to  bear  witness  to 
his  prudence,  fidelity,  and  zeal  from  the  very  begin- 
ning of  these  labors. 

"  I  remember  well,"  said  an  aged  lady,  "  when  he 
first  came  to  preach  at  Jacobstown.  He  appeared  like 
a  very  young  man,  and  this  fact  exposed  him  to 
special  observation  and  some  misgivings.  But  it  was 
conceded  by  all  that  he  was  a  very  prudent  young 
man  in  all  his  associations,  especially  in  the  society  of 
young  ladies.  The  most  fiistidious  found  no  occasion 
for  complaint,  and  the  most  garrulous,  no  opportunity 
for  scandal  or  gossip.  His  prudence  and  continued 
irreproachable  character,  added  efficiency  to  his  labors. 
But  his  fidelity  as  a  preacher  and  a  pastor,  was  felt 
and  acknowledged  by  all  who  attended  his  ministry. 
He  labored  earnestly,  and  seemed  to  know  no  weari- 
ness in  serving  the  cause  of  Christ." 

"  His  preaching,"  said  a  gentleman,  "  seemed  at 
once  to  awaken  an  interest.     There  was  so  much  of 


EEV.  JAMES  iV.   CIIALLISS  119 

life  and  zeal  about  it — more  than  we  had  been 
accustomed  to,  and  it  stirred  up  the  church  and  com- 
munity. He  was  highly  esteemed  in  the  pulpit,  and 
family,  by  all,  and  seemed  desirous  to  be  faithful 
always  and  to  everybody.  I  had  some  experience  of 
his  continued  faithfulness.  He  generally  stopped  at 
my  father's.  We  kept  what  some  call  a  Baptist 
Tavern,  that  is,  a  stopping-place  for  all  Baptist  min- 
isters. He  was  sure  to  talk  to  me  before  he  left  on 
the  subject  of  religion.  I  sometimes  tried  to  avoid 
him  by  leaving  the  house  and  keeping  out  of  sight  till 
he  was  gone.  I  remember  one  winter  day  well.  I 
was  lame,  and  could  not  well  escape.  But  I  hobbled 
out  to  the  barn,  and  oh,  how  cold  I  got ;  almost  froze, 
waiting  for  him  to  go  away ;  while  he,  probably,  was 
waiting  for  me  to  come  in,  that  he  might  speak  a  word 
to  me  before  leaving.  He  was  a  good  man  and  ac- 
complished a  good  work  at  Jacobstown." 

There  was  also  another  place,  where  Mr.  Challiss 
labored  long  and  successfully,  not  necessarily  con- 
nected with  his  own  immediate  field.  Freehold,  the 
county  town  of  Monmouth  County,  was  about  fifteen 
miles  from  his  residence.  There  was  a  little  company 
of  Baptists  there,  who  regarded  themselves  as  a 
branch  of  the  Upper  Freehold  Church,  and  looked  to 
them  for  preaching.  From  a  brief  account  of  the  rise 
and  progress  of  the  Baptist  Church  in  Freehold,  found 


120  REV.  JAMES  M    C  HALL  IS  S. 

in  their  minute-book,  and  dated  January,  1835,  we 
gather  these  facts. 

In  1762,  Elder  David  Jones,  from  Middletown, 
moved  into  the  vicinity  of  Freehokl.  He  is  supposed 
to  have  introduced  Baptist  sentiments  there.  In 
]  764,  he  began  to  preach  at  Upper  Freehold,  then  a 
branch  of  the  Middletown  Church,  and  continued  to 
labor  there  several  years,  occasionally  preaching  at 
Freehold,  then  more  generally  known  as  "Mon- 
mouth Court  House."  After  this,  the  neighborhood 
was  exceedingly  destitute  of  any  Baptist  preaching  till 
1813,  when  Elder  John  Cooper  commenced  preaching 
there  once  a  month,  on  week-days,  and  continued  till 
1821.  A  few  were  baptized,  but  the  cause  languished 
and  the  waste  places  remained  desolate.  Mr  Challiss 
gives  us  the  following  account  of  his  connection  with 
this  field. 

"  Soon  after  my  settlement,  my  attention  was  called 
to  a  branch  of  the  church,  fourteen  miles  distant,  near 
Freehold  Town,  the  capital  of  the  county.  There  I 
found,  within  one  mile  of  the  town,  an  old,  black 
meeting-house,  all  unfinished,  and  in  decay.  There 
was  one  man,  a  member  of  the  church,  and  eight  or 
ten  women.  Here  I  was  urged  to  come  and  preach 
the  word.  I  engaged  to  labor  at  thi.s  point  once  a 
month,  on  week  days,  and  on  the  fifth  Lord's  Day  of 
the   month.     My  first  pulpit  was   a   carpenter's   old 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  121 

M'ork-bencb,  while  the  people  sat  on  boards  laid  upon 
logs  of  wood.  Such  Avas  the  sad  state  of  things  in  that 
place.  Had  I  not  fouud  some  warm  friends  among 
the  Presbyterians  I  must  have  been  compelled  to  give 
it  up  in  despair,  But,  with  dint  of  perseverance  and 
much  prayer  I  held  on,  and  continued  thus  to  divide 
my  time  for  several  years,  and  finally  succeeded  in 
getting  the  place  of  worship  fitted  up  comfortably. 
Before  I  left  that  branch  of  the  church,  with  God's 
blessing,  I  had  the  pleasure  to  see  collected  there 
about  one  hundred  Baptists,  and  these  constituted  into 
a  church." 

The  Freehold  Church  was  constituted,  November 
28th,  1834,  with  ninety-four  members,  all  but  two  of 
these  were  previously  members  of  the  Upper  Freehold 
Church.  In  the  following  January  this  new  church 
asked  the  mother  church  to  allow  them  the  services  of 
Mr.  Challiss  on  the  second  Sunday  of  each  month. 
But  it  was  thought  not  best  for  the  interest  of  the 
cause  to  grant  this  request.  The  Freehold  Church 
immediately  sought  a  pastor  for  themselves,  and  soon 
secured  the  services  of  Rev.  C.  J.  Hopkins. 

Mr.  Challiss  closed  his  labors  with  them  March 
23d,  1835,  preaching  a  very  suitable  sermon  on  the 
occasion  from  the  words,  "  Finally,  brethren,  farewell ; 
be  perfect,  be  of  good  comfort,  be  of  one  mind,  live 
in  peace ;    and  the  God  of .  love   and  peace   shall  be 


122  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

with  you."  He  had  labored  on  this  field  more  than 
ten  years,  and,  though  his  visits  were  at  such  long  in- 
tervals, he  did  not  labor  in  vain.  Many  souls  were 
brought  to  Christ,  and  a  standard  was  set  up,  around 
which  many  were  to  be  gathered.  The  church  there 
constituted  has  continued  the  work  and  has  grown  in 
strength,  and  now  stands  forth  among  the  efficient 
churches  of  the  state,  doing  good  service  for  Christ. 
For  its  existence  and  present  prosperity,  it  is  no  little 
indebted  to  the  earnest,  persevering  labors  of  this 
servant  of  God. 

Thus  while  serving  one  church  faithfully  as  pastor, 
his  labors  outside  of  his  own  immediate  field  were 
untiring,  and  blessed  of  God  in  resuscitating  the  little, 
feeble,  struggling  church  at  Jacobstown,  and  in  estab- 
lishino;  the  church  at  Freehold. 

The  outside  effiDrts  of  Mr.  Challiss  were  recognized 
generally  as  efficient  and  greatly  blessed  of  God,  some 
still  live  on  these  fields,  who  hold  his  name  in  grate- 
ful remembrance  for  the  services  he  performed  and 
the  good  results  he  accomplished  at  Jacobstown  and 
Freehold. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

FIRST     PASTORATE     CONTINUED. 

September,  1823— ylpr//,  1838. 

TIJE  left  the  narrative  of  Mr.  Challiss'  labors  as 
pastor  of  the  Upper  Freehold  Church,  just  as  he 
had  entered  fully  upon  his  pastoral  work,  in  order  to 
introduce  some  items  of  interest  whose  history  com- 
menced about  that  time.  Now,  having  presented 
these  items  of  collateral  history  as  fully  as  our  limits 
will  allow,  the  narrative  of  his  pastorate  is  resumed 
by  quoting  from  the  letter  of  the  church  to  the  Asso- 
ciation in  September,  1823. 

"  With  us,  as  a  church,  for  years  past,  the  cause  of 
our  precious  Redeemer  has  been  bleeding,  and  the 
Saviour  wounded  in  the  house  of  his  friends.  But 
we  can  say,  hitherto  the  Lord  has  sustained  us,  and 
glory  to  his  name.  He  has,  in  a  measure,  lately  visited 
us  in  love  and  mercy.  During  the  year  past  we  have 
called  and  ordained  to  the  pastoral  care  of  this  church 
our  esteemed  brother  James  M.  Challiss,  who  on  our 
behalf  is  instant  in  season  and  out  of  season." 
11  12;] 


124  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

The  young  j^astor  found  opportunity  to  work,  both 
at  home  and  in  all  the  surrounding  country.  He  was 
the  pastor  of  a  feeble  church  with  but  few  co- 
workers, to  aid  him  in  building  up  the  waste  places  of 
Zion,  and  extending  her  influence.  Great  care  was 
necessary,  in  order  that  this  work  should  be  done 
fully  and  efiiciently.  The  responsibility  of  planning 
and  carrying  out  whatever  was  for  the  spiritual  or 
temporal  good  of  the  church  rested  mainly  with  the 
pastor.  All  around  he  found  great  demands  for 
preaching  and  missionary  labors.  For  miles,  in  every 
direction,  there  was  much  destitution  of  religious 
privileges,  and  upon  him  mainly  rested  the  responsi- 
bility of  supplying  this  want.  Earnestly  and  faith- 
fully he  sought  to  do  what  he  could  in  giving  to  the 
destitute  around  the  pure  words  of  life, — preaching 
in  school-houses  and  private  dwellings,  and  wherever 
a  door  was  opened.  "Besides  preaching  at  Jacobs- 
town  and  Freehold,  and  regularly  supplying  his  own 
pulpit,  he  had  several  out-stations  within  the  bounds 
of  his  own  congregation,  where  he  preached  with 
much  regularity  and  to  good  congregations,  and  from 
which  he  gathered  seals  to  his  ministry.  He  felt  a 
special  sympathy  for  the  people  along  the  edge  of  the 
pines,  who  were  scattered  as  sheep  without  a  shep- 
herd. He  succeeded  in  stirring  uji  the  people  at 
Goshen  to  build  a  small  house  of  worship,  in  which, 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  125 

many  times,  and  with  many  tears,  he  besought  sin- 
ners to  be  reconciled  to  God."  These  labors  were  not 
in  vain.  The  congregations  were  enlarged,  and  lis- 
tened to  the  word  preached  with  solemn  attention,  and 
the  number  of  inquirers  gradually  increased.  At  the 
close  of  another  year  the  brethren  were  constrained  to 
say,  "  During  the  year  past  the  Lord  has  granted  us 
tokens  of  his  love,  in  adding  a  few  to  our,  number, 
and  we  are  favored  with  union  and  brotherly  affec- 
tion." 

The  interest  seemed  to  rise  gradually  till  January, 
1826,  when  the  work  assumed  a  more  general  aspect 
and  a  gracious  revival  commenced.  For  the  next 
nine  years  the  church  was  greatly  blessed.  There 
were  many  precious  seasons,  scattered  through  these 
years  ;  indeed  it  was  almost  one  continual  revival. 
During  this  time,  Mr.  Challiss  baptized  two  hundred 
and  twenty  persons,  on  confession  of  their  faith  in 
Christ,  and  received  them  into  the  fellowship  of 
the  Upper  Freehold  Church ;  and  over  fifty  more, 
who  united  with  the  church  at  Jacobstown.  Many 
of  these  were  heads  of  families,  and  in  good  circum- 
stances. Both  churches  were  very  much  strength- 
ened by  the  additions. 

In  1827,  with  their  hearts  full  of  wonder  and  grat- 
itude, the  church  reported  to  the  Association :  "  We 
meet  with  joy  to  tell  what  the  Lord  hath  done  for  us, 


126  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

and  to  hear  of  the  victories  of  the  Cross.  Oh,  brethren, 
we  are  permitted  to  live  in  a  day  of  wonders  !  The 
Captain  of  our  salvation  is  now  riding  forth  victori- 
ously, and  his  dominion  is  extending  from  sea  to  sea, 
and  from  the  rivers  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth.  God 
hath  done  great  things  for  us,  and  we  rejoice  that 
Sunday-schools,  Tract,  Missionary,  and  Bible  Societies 
are  working  all  over  the  land." 

Two  years  after  this  we  find  the  following  allusion 
to  this  church,  in  the  report  of  the  Association  on 
"  The  state  of  religion  in  the  churches." — "  This 
body  seems  to  be  engaged  in  a  good  work.  Seven- 
teen have  been  baptized.  They  have  recently  organ- 
ized a  promising  Sunday-school.  There  are  two  other 
Sunday-schools  in  the  bounds  of  the  congregation, 
also  one  Catechism  and  two  Bible  classes.  Their 
Tract  and  Missionary  Societies  are  in  active  opera- 
tion." In  1830,  the  Church  wrote  to  the  Association 
as  follows :  "  In  the  early  part  of  the  year  our  pros- 
pects were  apparently  declining.  Our  harps  were 
hanging  on  the  willows,  and  our  language  was,  '  Hath 
God  forgotten  to  be  gracious  ?  AVill  he  be  favorable 
no  more  ?'  But  for  a  few  months  past  God  has  per- 
mitted us  to  rejoice  with  the  angels  in  heaven,  over 
the  conversion  of  sinners.  Among  the  converts  were 
quite  a  number  of  men  in  the  prime  of  life,  who  are 
already  active  in  our  Sunday-school  and  prayer  meet- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  127 

ings.  Our  prospects  as  a  church  were  never  more 
pleasing  than  at  present."  In  1831  they  wrote  :  "  For 
a  number  of  years  past  we  liave  enjoyed  the  privilege 
of  communicating  intelligence  of  Zion's  prosperity  in 
the  conversion  of  souls.  This  pleasure  is  not  denied 
us  this  year,  and,  in  many  respects,  we  have  cause  to 
thank  God  and  take  courage."  That  year  seemed  to 
be  marked  with  more  signal  manifestations  of  the 
presence  and  blessings  of  God  than  any  in  their  pre- 
vious history.  Thirty-six  were  baptized,  and  among 
them  several  young  men,  whose  active  labors  gave 
j)romise  of  much  usefulness. 

While  they  were  all  rejoicing  in  this  glorious  work, 
the  pastor  was  stricken  down  with  disease,  and  for  a 
time  his  recovery  was  quite  uncertain.  But  God  had 
other  work  for  him  to  do.  The  prayers  of  his  people 
were  heard,  and  his  servant  resumed  the  work  in 
which  his  heart  was  so  much  engaged.  In  writing  to 
a  Christian  relative  he  thus  refers  to  his  recovery  :  "  I 
am  permitted  to  say,  through  much  mercy,  that  my 
sickness  was  not  unto  death.  Mother  has  returned  to 
Salem.  The  work  of  the  Lord  is  still  progressing 
within  our  bounds.  I  have  baptized  forty  within 
about  five  months,  and  others  are  expected,"  His 
heart  was  on  the  work  and  not  on  himself.  The  joy 
felt  in  his  own  recovery  was  almost  lost  in  the  joy  he 

had  over  the  conversion  of  souls. 

11* 


128  ^^EV-  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS. 

During  tlie  following  year  the  interest  seemed  to 
decline  somewhat,  but  they  were  not  cast  down  or  dis- 
couraged in  their  work.  In  1833,  they  reported  fifty 
baptized  during  the  year.  The  church  had  now 
reached  a  membership  which  justified  them  in  claim- 
ing all  the  time  of  their  pastor  within  their  own 
bounds.  He  therefore  relinquished  his  connection 
with  the  church  at  Jacobstown,  and  as  soon  as  practi- 
cable a  church  was  constituted  at  Freehold.  In 
November,  1832,  ninety  of  their  number  were  dis- 
missed for  that  purpose.  In  June,  1835,  Mr.  Challiss 
wrote  to  a  Christian  friend :  "  I  have  now  been  labor- 
ing with  this  church  for  the  past  thirteen  years.  I 
trust  ray  labors  have  not  been  in  vain.  Such  was  the 
languishing  state  of  Zion  in  this  region,  when  I  re- 
moved here,  that  I  labored  more  as  a  missionary  than 
as  a  settled  pastor.  But  with  the  blessing  of  God  the 
cause  has  been  strengthened  so  much  that  two  other 
brethren  are  now  engaged  upon  the  field  which  I 
occupied  alone  for  ten  years.  I  am  now  giving  all 
my  time  to  the  church  at  home  with  which  I  first 
settled." 

During  the  remaining  three  years  of  his  pastorate 
at  Upper  Freehold  there  were  comparatively  few  addi- 
tions by  baptism,  but  there  was  a  healthful  growth  of 
the  church  and  a  hopeful  developing  of  the  moral 
forces  for  continued  service. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  129 

About  the  close  of  1836,  Mr.  Challiss  entertained 
some  thoughts  of  leaving  this  field  where  he  had 
labored  so  long  and  successfully.  He  thought,  per- 
haps he  had  accomplished  the  work  God  had  for  him 
to  do  here,  and  that  he  might  be  more  useful  in  some 
other  field,  and  that  another  laborer  might  enter  this 
field  and  reach  some  whom  he  had  failed  to  influence. 
Moreover  he  did  not  know  but  that  some  of  the 
church  had  thoughts  on  this  subject  kindred  to  his 
own.  So  he  concluded  that  a  change  would  be  best, 
both  for  the  church  and  himself.  But  when  this  mat- 
ter was  brought  to  a  test  he  found  the  people  united  in 
their  old  pastor,  and  that  they  would  not  consent  to 
his  leaving  them. 

The  First  Baptist  Churcih  of  Middletown,  N.  J., 
gave  him  a  call  to  become  their  pastor,  and  for  a  time 
he  seemed  quite  inclined  to  go,  but  after  "  long  delibera- 
tion and  much  prayer"  he  declined  the  call.  In 
writing  to  a  friend  on  this  subject,  he  said:  '^A  few 
months  past  I  expected  to  remove  from  this  church 
this  spring.  The  church  at  Middletown,  N.  J.,  sent 
me  a  pressing  call  to  settle  with  them,  and  at  one 
time  I  had  almost  made  up  my  mind  to  accept  the 
call  and  remove.  But  the  people  here  protested 
against  it  with  united  voice,  and  their  voice  prevailed. 
I  have  now  been  with  this  people  more  than  fifteen 


130  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

years,  and  it  seems  to  be  duty  to  remain  for  the 
present." 

His  decision  to  remain  seemed  to  have  rested  more 
on  the  desire  of  his  brethren  and  the  community  than 
on  his  own  judgment.  He  evidently  had  some 
doubts  of  the  wisdom  of  this  decision,  and  when, 
some  months  after,  he  received  a  call  to  the  pastoral 
charge  of  the  Lower  Dublin  Church,  Pennsylvania, 
he  felt  that  Providence  indicated  clearly  that  he 
should  resign  his  charge  at  Upper  Freehold,  and 
enter  upon  another  field  of  labor. 

In  a  little  record  made  directly  after  his  removal, 
he  gives  us  this  general  review  of  the  time  and  labors 
of  his  first  pastoral  charge.  "  Here,  as  pastor  of  the 
Upper  Freehold  Church,  and  a  resident  of  the  village 
of  Imlaystown,  I  remained  for  sixteen  years.  At  the 
time  of  my  going  to  that  church,  our  denomination  in 
that  part  of  the  state  was  in  a  very  sad  condition. 
There  was  then  but  one  settled  pastor  in  that  county, 
and  he  proved  to  be  an  impostor.  During  my  min  • 
istry  there,  the  New  Jersey  Baptist  State  Convention 
was  organized,  which  has  been  greatly  blessed  in 
raising  the  denomination  to  respectability  and  useful- 
ness. When  I  first  went  there,  there  were  but  two 
active,  working  men  in  the  entire  church,  and  these 
were  living  miles  apart  and  away  from  the  meeting- 
house.    But  the  Lord  added  unto  them  such  as  shall 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  131 

be  saved.  I  lived  there  to  see,  what  is  very  seldom 
seen,  that  is,  that  every  man  in  the  church,  who  was 
in  the  practice  of  coming  to  meeting  and  almost  every 
woman,  were  received  by  my  hands.  During  my 
ministry  there  I  baptized  three  hundred  and  nine 
persons  on  profession  of  their  faith  in  Christ.  Before 
I  left,  they  enlarged  their  place  of  worship  and 
greatly  improved  its  appearance.  For  this  success  all 
the  glory  is  due  to  God." 

The  number  of  baptisms  given  above  includes  the 
fifty-six  baptized  at  Jacobstown  and  received  into 
that  church.  These  results  were  not  without  the 
earnest  and  continued  work  of  the  pastor.  God 
accepted  the  labors  of  his  faithful  servant,  and  in 
these  many  seals  to  his  ministry,  verified  again  the 
declaration  of  his  own  word,  "  They  that  sow  in  tears 
shall  reap  in  joy.  He  that  goeth  forth  and  weepeth, 
bearing  precious  seed,  shall,  doubtless,  come  again 
with  rejoicing,  bringing  his  sheaves  with  him." 

During  his  entire  pastorate  here  Mr.  Challiss 
regularly  kept  up  his  out-stations,  preaching  in 
school-houses  and  private  houses,  in  different  neigh- 
borhoods, and  distributing  many  tracts  in  connection 
with  this  work.  These  labors  were  greatly  blessed, 
and  were  often  the  beginning  of  seasons  of  special 
interest. 

In  the  early  days  of  this  work  he  kept  no  horse, 


132  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

and  so  went  to  these  appointments  on  foot,  or  occa- 
sionally assisted  on  his  way  by  a  neighbor  or  some 
friendly  traveler.  In  reference  to  this  time  he  says, 
"  Having  no  means  of  traveling  among  the  scattered 
population,  like  my  blessed  Master  I  went  on  foot, 
preaching  in  destitute  neighborhoods  and  calling  on 
men  to  I'epent  and  believe  the  gospel,  and  I  had  my 
reward." 

After  a  little  time  he  kept  his  own  conveyance,  an 
arrangement  which  was  necessary  in  order  to  meet  his 
many  engagements  in  the  extended  field  he  occupied. 
His  son,  Dr.  W.  C.  Challiss,  gives  some  personal 
reminiscences  in  reference  to  these  out-stations,  which 
are  characteristic  of  the  father. 

"  My  earliest  recollections  of  him  were  at  Imlays- 
town.  He  would  frequently  take  me  with  him  to  his 
afternoon  appointments,  of  which  there  were  many,  and 
some  quite  remote  from  his  home.  One  thing  is  in- 
delibly impressed  upon  my  recollection,  as  it  would  be 
upon  the  mind  of  any  boy  under  like  circumstances, 
and  that  is,  his  consideration  and  feeling  for  dumb 
brutes,  and  especially  his  horse.  He  traveled  in 
those  days  in  a  gig  or  chaise,  with  one  horse,  such  as 
would  now  be  considered  only  possible  to  propel, 
through  the  arid  and  sandy  roads  of  that  portion  of 
New  Jersey,  with  two  or  four  horses.  It  was  over 
such  roads  that  he  was  obliged  to  travel  to  fill  some 


REV.  JAMES  iM.    CIIALLISS.  133 

of  his  appointments,  especially  at  Freehold  and 
Egypt.  Whenever  in  those  sandy  districts  we  would 
meet  an  ascent  in  the  road,  he  would  invariably  say, 
'  Come,  my  son,  this  is  too  heavy  for  Dick ;  let  us  get 
out  and  walk.'  \yalk  I  did,  but  not  without  much 
tribulation,  for  I  could  not  understand  the  propriety 
of  keeping  a  horse  and  walking  yourself.  Such  was 
my  solicitude  on  this  subject,  that  I  was  constantly 
watching  for  the  kills,  as  I  well  knew  I  would  be 
invited  to  my  feet.  I  can  now  appreciate  his  hu- 
mane feelings  in  this  matter,  but  then  such  conduct 
seemed  unnecessary  and  without  excuse. 

"It  was,  perhaps,  after  one  of  those  journeys,  and 
after  my  trampings  had  been  exhaustive,  that  during 
service  I  fell  fast  asleep,  and,  with  head  thrown  back 
upon  the  bench  and  mouth  distended,  I  was  quite 
forgetful  of  hard  roads  or  sermons.  Pa  stopped 
preaching,  and  fixing  his  eye  upon  one  near  me,  and 
with  finger  pointed  at  me,  said,  '  My  good  brother, 
will  you  wake  up  that  boy?'  That  did  not  require 
much  effort,  as  the  pause  in  the  sermon  and  change  of 
tone  so  startled  me,  that  by  the  time  he  made  the 
request  I  was  fully  awake  to  the  situation  with  no 
inclination  for  further  slumber.  This  little  incident 
exemplifies  an  enduring  trait  in  his  character,  to 
practice  what  he  preached,  and  never  require  of  any 
one  what  he  did   not  or  would   not  perform  himself. 


134  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

He  would  always  sacrifice  himself  or  his  own  to 
illustrate  a  great  principle,  before  he  would  assail  the 
feelings  of  any  of  his  hearers.  In  this  instance,  he 
designed  to  impress  upon  that  audience,  that  sleeping 
during  divine  service  was  not  allowable,  and  for  this 
purpose  selected  his  own  son  for  the  sacrifice." 

Mr.  Challiss  conducted  these  services  at  the  out- 
stations  with  much  simplicity  and  informality,  but 
with  an  earnestness  and  fervor  fitting  his  responsi- 
ble position,  as  one  appointed  of  God  to  watch  for 
souls.  Often  these  occasions  were  seasons  of  great 
solemnity,  and  many  of  .those  baptized  by  him  while 
he  was  pastor  at  Upper  Freehold  were  first  awakened 
in  these  meetings.  There  are  many  still  living  who 
refer  to  some  of  these  occasions  as  times  of  special 
interest  to  themselves  or  some  dear  friend.  The  text, 
or  something  in  the  sermon,  or  a  hymn  sung,  is  still 
held  in  cherished  memory;  because  then  and  there, 
through  these  means,  the  Holy  Spirit  prompted  them 
to  inquire,  "What  must  I  do  to  be  saved?"  or  "wit^ 
nessed  with  their  spirit,  that  they  were  born  of  God." 

This  missionary  work  consumed  much  time,  was 
often  very  fatiguing,  and  left  little  opportunity  for 
study,  but  it  was  the  great  auxiliary  to  his  pastoral 
success.  Sometimes  there  were  no  apparent  results 
from  the  labor  expended.  Often,  and  perhaps  gene- 
rally, it  was  a  work  of  faith.     The  bread  was  cast 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  135 

upon  tlie  water  with  prayer  and  tears,  and  the  return 
was  waited  for  in  faith  and  hope.  In  some  neighbor- 
hoods these  labors  seemed  to  be  ahiiost  hopeless,  and 
occasionally  suffered  strange  interruptions. 

On  one  occasion  he  was  preaching  at  a  school-liouse 
on  Cream  Ridge,  just  at  the  beginning  of  harvest 
time.  It  was  before  the  days  of  mowing  machines 
and  reapers.  As  he  was  accustomed  to  select  texts 
and  subjects  in  harmony  Avith  times  and  seasons,  he 
announced  as  his  text,  "  Put  ye  in  the  sickle ;  for 
the  harv^est  is  ripe,"  and  was  quite  surprised  to  receive 
from  one  of  his  hearers,  the  immediate  response,  "The 
harvest  is  past  on  this  side  of  the  Ridge."  He  was 
disconcerted  for  a  moment,  and  then  responded  in 
substance,  "  Your  harvest  may  be  past  for  this  sum- 
mer, but  God's  harvest  will  not  be  past  till  you  and 
I  and  all  here  are  either  gathered  as  wheat  into  the 
garner  of  the  Lord,  or  as  chaif  to  be  burned  in  un- 
quenchable fire.  Oh,  let  us  all  see  to  it,  that  we  so 
improve  the  months  of  God's  patient  waiting  for  us 
now,  that  we  do  not  then  take  up  the  lamentation, 
'The  harvest  is  past,  the  summer  is  ended,  and  we 
are  not  saved.'" 

On  another  occasion  he  was  greatly  disturbed  while 
preaching  in  a  school-house  in  another  neighborhood. 
In  those  days  the  people  consented  to  ride  to  meeting 

in  their  open  wagons,  taking  chairs  from  their  houses 
12 


136  REV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

as  seats  and  using  them  as  seats  at  the  place  of  meet- 
ing. Often,  too,  during  the  summer,  men  would 
appear  without  their  coats.  On  this  occasion  a 
stranger,  perhaps  recently  married,  had  come  in  his 
open  wagon,  and  taking  his  two  chairs  went  coatless 
into  the  meeting.  Loaning  a  chair  to  an  old  man 
who  entered  with  him,  he  took  his  seat  and  quietly 
awaited  the  services.  All  went  smoothly  on  till  the 
preacher  announced  his  text,  "  Friend,  how  earnest 
thou  in  hither,  not  having  a  wedding  garment?" 
The  coatless  man  was  startled  and  hastily  glancing 
around  seemed  lo  discover  to  his  dismay  that  he  was 
the  only  man  present  without  a  coat.  Just  then  the 
preacher  repeated  his  text  with  special  emphasis. 
The  stranger  could  stand  it  no  longer,  but  he  was 
not  speechless.  He  started  up,  and  shaking  the  man 
to  whom  he  had  loaned  the  chair,  he  said,  with  great 
agitation  and  loud  enough  to  be  distinctly  heard  by 
all  present,  "Give  me  my  chair.  He  means  me! 
He  means  me!"  And  so  chairs  in  hand  he  rushed 
from  the  house,  lea^'ing  the  mirth  of  the  young  folks 
no  little  excited  and  the  serious  thoughts  of  the 
older  ones  no  little  disturbed,  while  the  preacher  felt 
that  his  text  and  sermon  were  seriously  damaged 
for  that  day.  It  did  not  suffice  him  to  say,  "  If  it 
were  only  garments  made  with  hands  to  clothe  these 
poor  mortal  bodies  of  ours  it  would  be  a  small  matter. 


si       I 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  137 

That  the  garment  needed  was  Christ-wrought  and 
for  the  soul,  necessary  for  us  in  order  to  stand  ac- 
cepted before  God."  The  scene  was  too  vivid  and 
too  ludicrous  to  be  thus  hastily  covered  up.  The 
coatless  man  had  left  with  his  chairs,  and  was  hasten- 
ing to  his  home,  but  the  thoughts  of  the  people  were 
with  him,  and  the  preacher  felt  like  one  beating  the 
air. 

Mr.  Challiss  always  regarded  his  pastorate  at  Upper 
Freehold  as  the  most  happy  and  useful  years  of  his 
life.  This  feeling,  doubtless,  derived  some  of  its 
strength  from  the  force  and  tenacity  of  first  impres- 
sions. Here  were  his  first  love  and  labors  as  a  pastor. 
On  this  field  he  spent  the  early  days  of  his  chosen 
work,  and  here  continued  till  he  reached  the  strength 
of  his  manhood.  The  hand  of  God  was  clearly  seen 
in  his  settlement  and  continuance  with  this  people. 
Here  God  had  signally  blessed  his  labors  in  the  con- 
version of  souls  and  the  building  up  of  Zion. 

Here,  too,  the  young  wife  was  first  brought  to  share 
the  cares  and  joys  of  the  pastor's  life,  and  here  was 
their  first  home,  and  the  scenes  of  their  early  life 
struggles.  Here  was  the  dear  "  Old  Parsonage," 
where  they  lived  so  long,  and  where  all  their  children, 
but  Emma,  were  born.  Its  adjoining  grove  and 
rugged  side-hill ;  its  little  orchard  and  garden  and 
cozy  door-yard ;   every  spot  about  it,  every  tree  and 


138  ^^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

shrub  had  memories  dear  to  them  or  theirs.  And 
here  was  the  continued  home  of  many  life-long  and 
kind-hearted  friends.  Many  memories  of  social  life 
sweetly  clustered  here,  blending  with  the  assurance 
of  their  own  usefulness  in  God's  service.  The  time 
and  labor  spent  here  were  often  reviewed  and  lived 
over  and  over  again.  Along  these  years  of  their  life- 
journey  were  many  green  spots  to  both  the  pastor  and 
his  wife;  and  in  after  years,  when  burdens  grew 
heavy,  because  of  over-toil  or  feebleness,  memory  often 
took  them  back  to  these  green  spots  to  rest  awhile. 
No  wonder  they  often  revisited  Upper  Freehold  and 
the  places  there  made  sacred  to  them  by  so  many  hal- 
lowed associations ;  and  so  often  recalled  these  days  of 
their  earlier  liie. 

Ml.  Challiss  ever  retained  his  interest  in  this  field 
and  a  strong  attachment  to  the  church.  Immediately 
after  moving  away  he  wrote  to  an  old  friend,  giving 
her  an  account  of  their  cordial  reception  at  their  new 
home,  and  then  added,  "  But  my  Jersey  friends — the 
thought  of  separation  from  them  gives  me  pain." 
Two  years  after  this  he  said,  in  a  letter  to  a  friend  at 
Upper  Freehold,  "  Though  separated  from  the  friends 
we  love,  we  cannot  be  absent  from  them  in  mind.  I 
am  often,  in  thought,  with  the  church  at  Upper  Free- 
liolcL"  And  again,  he  wrote  to  the  same  friend,  "  I 
can  assure  you  that  the  cause  of  Christ  and  the  breth- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHAIJJSS.  139 

ren  there  still  lie  near  my  heart,  and  I  long  to  hear 
from  you,  and  to  know  that  it  is  well  with  yon.  And 
especially  now  that  you  are  so  soon  to  be  ^vithout  a 
j)astor.  May  the  Great  Shepherd  direct  you  to  a  wise 
choice." 

He  was  accustomed,  when  he  possibly  could,  to 
make  an  annual  visit  to  this  church,  and  to  spend  a 
Lord's  Day  with  them.  Thus  he  kept  fresh  his  early 
love  for  this  people,  and  held  himself  in  continuous 
personal  contact  with  their  history.  On  his  visit 
there  in  the  summer  of  1846,  he  found  that  there 
was  a  great  want  of  more  interest  and  spiritual  life 
among  the  members  of  the  church,  and  that  their 
young  pastor  was  no  little  discouraged  in  his  work. 
The  heart  of  the  old  pastor  was  deeply  concerned  on 
account  of  these  things.  There  was  living  then  an  old 
lady,  a  member  of  the  church,  who  was  familiarly 
known  as  "Aunt  Fanny."  She  observed  a  weekly 
fast-day.  Sometimes,  on  her  fast-day,  she  would  go 
to  the  meeting-house,  and  there,  alone,  have  her 
meeting.  She  would  pray,  and  read  a  hymn  and  a 
portion  of  Scripture  and  pray  again.  To  her  these 
days  were  more  feast-days  than  fast-days. 

During  his  visit  this  year,  Mr.  Challiss  felt  that  he 
must  go  alone  to  the  old  meeting-house.  The  memo- 
ries of  the  past,  in  reference  to  his  heart-struggles  be- 
fore God,  as  he  tried,  in  the  ardor  and  inexperience  of 

12* 


140  R^^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

his  youth,  to  preach  there  the  gospel  of  Christ,  were 
now  too  sacred  for  companionship.  Alone,  quietly, 
and  with  reverence,  he  entered  the  house,  hallowed  by 
so  many  associations.  He  passed  on  up  the  aisle  and 
took  his  old  seat  in  the  pulpit.  His  thoughts  Avere 
busy  with  the  past,  while  now,  as  in  the  presence  of 
God,  he  reviewed  his  labors  here. 

A  noise  in  the  corner  of  the  house  attracted  his  at- 
tention. He  listened  a  moment  and  then  recognized 
a  voice  in  prayer.  "  Aunt  Fanny"  had  entered  the 
house  unobserved  by  him,  and,  unconscious  of  his 
presence,  was  engaged  in  her  usual  services.  The 
pastor  who  had  so  often  preached  to  her  in  former 
years  now  attended  with  interest  while  she  led  the 
service.  There  she  knelt  in  prayer,  pouring  out  her 
heart's  desire  before  God,  for  his  blessings  u])on  her 
own  soul  and  upon  the  church  she  so  much  loved. 

The  old  pastor's  heart  was  cheered  as  he  felt  con- 
strained to  say,  ''  Surely  the  Lord  will  not  leave  this 
people  while  there  is  one  such  living  to  pray."  The 
youthful  pastor  of  the  church  was  encouraged,  by  a 
knowledge  of  these  facts,  to  hope  for  better  days. 
This  hope  was  not  long  deferred.  During  the  follow- 
ing winter  a  very  gracious  revival  was  enjoyed  by 
them,  and  at  the  next  Association  they  reported : 
"  During  the  past  year  the  Lord  has  visited  this  an- 
cient vine   with  mercy  and  goodness.      The    church 


REV.  JA3IES  M.   CIIALIJSS.  141 

has  passed  through  a  joyful  season  of  genuine  revival. 
Seldom,  if  ever,  have  we  been  favored  with .  such  a 
display  of  divine  power.  Prayer  w'as  heard  and  the 
gospel  of  Christ  became  the  power  of  God  to  the  sal- 
vation of  many  souls. 

Time  did  not  lessen  the  interest  Mr.  Challiss  felt 
for  his  first  charge.  Fifteen  years  after  leaving  the 
field,  he  wrote  to  some  friends  there,  "Though  I 
am  separated  from  you  by  time  and  distance,  my  af- 
fection for  the'  old  friends  of  my  youth  remains  im- 
movable, and  will  forever.  I  often  think  of  the  old 
church  and  how  she  is  succeeding.  More  than  once 
I  have  imagined  in  my  dreams  that  I  was  about  to 
settle  again  as  pastor  with  them,  but  lo,  it  was  a 
dream," 

In  the  summer  of  1864,  the  church  remodeled  and 
enlarged  their  meeting-house  at  Imlaystown.  Mr. 
Challiss  showed  his  continued  interest  in  the  church 
by  securing  for  them  a  fine  bell,  as  will  be  seen  from 
the  following  account  in  one  of  their  county  news- 
papers: "  We  incidentally  learn  that  the  Baptist 
Church  at  Imlaystown,  in  this  county,  has  been  re- 
cently made  the  recipient  of  an  appropriate  and  grati- 
fying donation.  Having  lately  placed  a  new  spire 
upon  their  house  of  worship,  they  were  still  destitute 
of  a  bell.  This  fact  coming  to  the  knowledge  of  Rev. 
James   M.    Challiss,    former   pastor   of    the    church, 


142  JiEV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS. 

through  correspondence  with  a  nieraber  of  the  Society, 
he  communicated  with  his  son,  Mr,  L.  C.  Challiss,  a 
wealthy  resident  of  New  York,  and  the  result  is  the 
donation,  by  that  gentleman,  of  a  handsome  bell. 
The  bell  is  large,  possesses  an  excellent  tone,  and  is  to 
be  called,  we  understand,  the  '  Challiss  Bell,'  in  honor 
of  the  donor." 

In  November,  1867,  Mr.  Challiss  wa-ote  to  some 
friends  in  Mount  Holly,  "  I  am  going  to  Upper  Free- 
hold to  help  Brother  Hires  in  a  meeting,  and  I  hope 
it  will  not  be  in  vain.  Also  to  visit  once  more  my 
dear  old  friends  there."  He  remained  there  about 
three  weeks,  assisting  the  pastor  in  extra  meetings. 
He  entered  at  once  with  his  usual  zest  upon  the  work, 
an<l  seemed  anxious  to  do  all  his  strength  ^vould  ad- 
mit,  in  j)reaching  and  visiting  among  the  people. 
The  time  spent  here  gave  him  the  opportunity  of  vis- 
iting many  old  friends  with  whom,  more  than  forty 
years  before,  he  had  taken  "  sweet  counsel  and  walked 
to  the  house  of  God  in  company."  He  greatly  en- 
joyed this  privilege  of  preaching  again  on  the  field  of 
his  early  labors,  and  visiting  once  more  those  friends 
of  his  early  life.  He  left,  in  order  to  attend  a  conven- 
tion of  the  "Superintendents  of  the  Public  Schools  of 
the  State,"  held  in  Trenton,  December  4th.  To  a 
friend  whom  he  met  in  this  Convention,  he  expressed 
the  great  pleasure  he  had  experienced  in  his  recent 


REV.  JAMES  M.  CIIALLISS.  143 

visit.  His  heart  was  full  of  gratitude  in  view  of 
God's  goodness  to  him  while  he  labored  as  pastor  in 
that  field,  and  in  permitting  him  still  to  have  so 
many  pleasant  associations  there.  But  he  felt  that  he 
was  now  too  far  advanced  in  life  to  endure  the  fatigue 
of  extra  meetings,  and  that  this  was  probably  his  last 
visit  to  that  dear  old  church.  And  so  it  proved  to  be. 
A  fitting  conclusion  of  his  early  work  and  life-long  in- 
terest for  this  people, — a  renewal  of  his  love  and 
labors  for  them  just  a  little  while  before  entering  upon 
his  eternal  reward, — while  the  Saviour  was  waiting  to 
say,  "  Well  done,  tliou  good  and  faithful  servant,  en- 
ter thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord." 

The  feelings  of  Mr.  Challiss  towards  the  people  of 
Upper  Freehold  were  not  without  reciprocation.  The 
remembrance  of  the  youthful  pastor  remained  fragrant 
with  the  generation  that  shared  his  toils,  and  the 
blessings  of  his  labors.  Those  of  them  who  survive 
him  still  repeat  to  his  praise  their  high  estimate  of 
his  self-denying  labors  for  their  good,  his  heart-felt 
symjmthy  in  their  joys  and  sorrows,  and  the  consist- 
ent and  godly  life  which  he  ever  exemplified  before 
them.  They  have  told  these  things  to  their  chil- 
dren, till  the  children,  scarcely  less  than  their  parents, 
have  learned  to  esteem  and  love  the  name  and  mem- 
ory of  this  servant  of  God. 

The  busy,  bustling  world  may  wonder  at  the  sj^ecial 


144  REV   JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

interest  which  individuals,  families,  or  communities 
feel  in  events  which  seem  to  the  world  of  so  little 
moment ;  yet  there  are  often  events  in  the  history  of  a 
community,  or  family,  or  individual  pertaining  to 
themselves  alone,  which  are  ever  kept  fresh  in  their 
memory  and  esteemed  more  important  to  them  ^than 
the  history  of  all  the  world  besides.  It  is  not  strange, 
therefore,  that  many  recall  such  events  in  their  life- 
experience  with  great  vividness. 

Said  one,  "I  knew  Mr.  Challiss  from  his  first 
coming  to  Upper  Freeho^ll.  I  remember  him  well 
before  his  marriage  ;  and  also  when  he  brought  his 
young  wife  to  live  among  us.  They  boarded  near  us 
from  August  till  April,  and  he  was  frequently  at  our 
house.  Some  time  after  settling  with  us  as  pastor  he 
commenced  preaching  on  the  third  Sunday  of  each 
month,  at  Jaeobstown,  and  generally  called  at  our 
house  on  his  way  home.  I  Avas  then  a  young  wife, 
full  of  worldly  care  and  hope,  but  without  hope  in 
Christ.  On  one  occasion  he  had  stopped  with  us  over 
night.  In  the  morning  he  came  back  where  I  was  at 
work,  and,  knowing  and  seeing  my  worldly  seeking, 
he  said  to  me  with  much  feeling,  '  Seek  first  the  king- 
dom of  God  and  his  righteousness.'  These  words 
were  the  barbed  arrow  in  my  heart.  I  could  not  cast 
them  from  me,  nor  find  relief  till  I  sought  with  all 
my  heart  the  kingdom  of  God  ;  and  by  faith  accepted 


RKV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  145 

the  righteousness  of  Christ,  as  my  soul's  cleliverance 
from  sin,  and  assurance  of  future  glory.  This  was 
the  great  event  of  my  life.  Not  long  after  this  Mr. 
Challiss  baptized  me,  and  I  became  a  member  of  the 
church. 

"  I  remember  that  he  j^reached  much  in  the  school- 
houses  around  the  country,  and  that  these  labors  re- 
sulted in  much  good.  His  anxiety  for  the  uncon- 
verted husbands,  wives,  and  children  of  the  congrega- 
tion was  very  great,  and  frequently  he  would  present 
their  case,  with  earnest  pleadings  and  tears,  before 
God  in  prayer  and  often  would  mention  their  names 
when  praying  for  them.  He  was  a  good  pastor,  and 
spent  much  of  his  time  among  the  people,  faithful  and 
sympathizing,  and  always  attentive  and  kind  in  afflic- 
tion. He  was  highly  esteemed  by  the  entire  commu- 
nity, and  ever  welcomed  in  his  visits  among  this 
people." 

Another  says,  "  I  knew  Mr.  Challiss  many  years. 
When  I  was  a  little  girl  I  went  to  school  to  him  one 
quarter.  It  was  soon  after  he  came  to  Upper  Free- 
hold. Pie  had  the  good  will  of  the  children  and 
young  people.  They  regarded  him  as  their  true 
friend  and  as  one  desiring  to  do  them  real  good.  He 
baptized  me  in  1836,  and  I  have  always  esteemed 
him  highly  for  his  zeal  and  fidelity  in  his  great  Avork. 
His  labors  were   eminently  practical.     He  evidently 


146  I^'EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS 

desired  to  do  the  greatest  good  to  the  greatest  number 
in  the  shortest  time." 

"  I  always  loved  him,"  said  another,  "  he  was  so 
faithful  and  kind  as  a  preacher,  pastor,  and  friend. 
He  seemed  so  to  feel  his  high  calling,  and  so  to  preach 
the  gospel,  that  he  commanded  our  respect  and  love. 
His  life  was  so  in  harmony  with  the  truths  he  pre- 
sented, we  were  constrained  to  love  him  as  a  good 
servant  of  Jesus  Christ  bringing  to  us  the  words  of 
salvation.  His  coming  here  was  a  great  blessing  to 
this  church  and  community ;  and  his  leaving,  a  great 
loss  to  us." 

This  friend  was  quite  unreconciled  to  her  pastor's 
removal  from  the  field  where  God  had  so  blessed  his 
labors.  With  many  others,  she  earnestly  protested 
against  his  leaving.  But  when  the  brethren  came 
from  Lower  Dublin  to  move  him  away  she  hastened 
to  the  parsonage  to  tender  what  assistance  she  could, 
and  lighten  the  burdens  of  the  family  in  preparing  for 
their  removal.  Some  of  these  brethren  said  in  her 
presence,  "  How  foolish  we  were  to  bring  so  many  of 
our  big  Pennsylvania  wagons  to  move  a  Jersey 
pastor."  This  remark  grated  no  little  upon  her  feel- 
ings, but  she  held  her  peace  until  their  wagons  were 
all  loaded  up  and  other  goods  remained.  Then  she 
said  to  them,  with  some  spirit,  "  You  see  your  big 
wagons  are  now  full,  yet  you  cannot  take  all  the  goods 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIAf.LISS.  147 

belonging  to  this  Jersey  pastor.  Now,  l)rethren,  see 
to  it,  that  when  he  leaves  you  it  does  not  take  a  less 
number  of  big  wagons  to  move  his  goods." 

A  further  confirmation  of  the  value  of  his  work  at 
Upper  Freehold,  and  the  estimation  in  which  he  was 
held  in  the  community  may  be  gathered  from  the  lan- 
guage of  those  who  succeeded  him  in  the  pastoral 
office  there.  "  I  was  a  successor,"  says  one,  "  of 
Brother  Challiss  in  the  pastorate  at  Upper  Freehold. 
The  efficiency  of  the  church  there  was  mainly  owing 
to  his  labors.  He  found  it  in  a  very  low  state  when 
he  went  there,  and  it  was  in  a  comparatively  prosper- 
ous state  when  he  left.  His  labors  were  abundant 
and  continuous.  He  preached  all  around  the  country, 
in  different  neighborhoods,  with  great  acceptance  and 
good  results.  His  social  qualities  and  earnest  pastoral 
work  gave  him  power,  and  were  felt  in  the  entire  com- 
munity. The  church  and  the  cause  of  religion  grew 
in  strength  and  in  the  favor  of  God  and  men.  I  did 
not  regard  him  as  much  of  a  student.  He  lived  so 
much  among  the  people,  engaged  in  missionary  and 
pastoral  work,  that  he  had  not  time  enough  left  for  a 
student's  work.  But  he  had  a  very  tenacious  memory 
and  retained  well  what  he  heard  and  read.  He  could 
recall  clearly  and  use  eflfectively  material  thus  gather- 
ed up  and  suggested,  in    his  too  scanty  opportunities 

of  preparation   for  preaching;   and  his  sermons  were 

13 


148  RE^^-  JAMES  M.    CHALLTSS. 

insti'iictive  and  eminently  practical.  His  fervor,  ear- 
nestness, and  evident  sincerity  secured  him  attentive 
and  api)rceiating  hearers.  He  was  greatly  esteemed 
and  beloved  by  both  the  church  and  community,  and 
when  he  removed  from  the  field,  he  left  an  influence 
which  was  a  savor  of  life  unto  life." 

Another  of  his  successors  says,  "It  was  my  privi- 
lege when  a  small  boy  to  hear  him  preach,  at  a  June 
meeting  held  at  Holnidel,  soon  after  his  settlement  at 
Upper  Freehold,  when  his  cheeks  were  glowing  with 
youthful  loveliness.  He  spake  with  great  earnestness 
the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus,  and  sang  at  the  close  of  the 
service  a  very  impressive  piece  that  I  have  often  heard 
spoken  of  since  I  have  been  in  the  ministry.  I  doubt 
not  that  impressions  were  then  made  which  are  still 
cherished  by  some  who  are  now  living,  and  were  cher- 
ished by  others  till  the  time  of  their  death.  I  do  not 
remember  the  text,  though  young  as  I  was,  I  know  I 
was  affected  by  the  earnest  and  pathetic  manner  of  the 
preacher. 

"At  Upper  Freehold  he  labored  faithfully  for  six- 
teen years,  and  under  his  labors  the  church  there  was 
greatly  strengthened  and  the  church  at  Freehold  was 
organized.  He  has  left  a  grateful  impression  of  his 
faithful  labors  throughout  that  entire  region  and  he 
was  greatly  beloved  and  respected  by  all  the  people." 

Another  pastor  of  the  Upper  Freehold  Church,  who 


REV.  JAMES  M.   C II ALL  IS  S.  149 

occupied  that  field  several  years  after  Mr.  Challiss  had 
left,  thus  speaks  of  his  labors  there :  "  He  worked 
with  a  will  that  never  grew  weary  in  well-doing. 
His  zeal,  energy,  and  perseverance  in  gathering  a  con- 
gregation, and  the  blessing  of  God  upon  his  preaching, 
making  the  word  effective  in  the  conversion  of  souls  to 
Christ,  com  mended  him  as  a  workman  that  needeth 
not  to  be  ashamed.  He  was  'instant  in  season  and 
out  of  season,  always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the 
Lord.'  By  the  variety  of  his  labors  in  the  church,  his 
earnestness,  his  untiring  zeal,  his  ardent  love  to  Christ 
and  his  church,  his  fervent  desire  for  the  salvation  of 
souls  and  for  the  growth  and  prosperity  of  the  church, 
his  excellent  moral  character  and  the  ffood  manaa-e- 
ment  of  his  own  financial  affairs,  he  attained  to  a  posi- 
tion in  the  confidence  and  esteem  of  the  people,  and 
especially  of  his  brethren,  that  but  few  men  excel." 

In  a  "  Historical  Sketch  of  the  Baptist  Church  of 
Upper  Freehold,"  recently  prepared  by  Rev.  W.  D. 
Hires,  pastor,  we  find  this  allusion  to  Mr.  Challiss' 
pastorate  there,  "The  settlement  of  Rev.  James  M. 
Ciialliss  as  pastor  of  this  church  marks  an  epoch  in  its 
history.  He  came  to  the  pastorate  in  his  early  man- 
hood, his  heart  all  aglow  with  love  to  Jesus,  his  cause, 
and  the  souls  of  men.  He  was  ordained  to  the  work, 
December  7th,  1822,  and  for  a  period  of  sixteen  years 
he  labored  assiduously,  being  instant  in  season  and  out 


150  R^^-  J-'^MES  M.   CHALLISS. 

of  season.     He  now  rests  from  his  labors   'and  his 
works  do  follow  him.'" 

Time  has  produced  many  changes  on  this  field 
where  Mr.  Challiss  spent  the  years  of  his  early  min- 
istry, and  but  few  of  the  old  landmarks  remain.  The 
old  meeting-house,  in  which  the  church  then  wor- 
shiped, was  vacated  years  ago  for  a  new  and  larger 
house  at  Imlaystown.  But  the  old  house  still  stands, 
and  appears  very  much  as  it  did  fifty  years  ago. 
Most  of  the  venerable  trees  that  once  shaded  it  have 
died;  and  the  dust  of  many  who  were  accustomed  to 
worship  in  it  now  lies  in  the  adjoining  grave-yard. 
It  is  known  in  all  that  region  as  "  The  Yellow  Meet- 
ing-House,"  and  is  used  only  for  occasional  preaching 
and  for  funeral  services. 

Mr.  Challiss,  during  the  entire  time  of  his  pastorate 
at  Upper  Freehold,  grew  in  the  confidence  of  his 
brethren  in  the  ministry  and  of  the  churches  in  the 
Association.  They  gave  him  repeated  expressions  of 
their  confidence,  and  their  esteem  of  him  as  a  man  and 
a  preacher,  by  assigning  him  positions  of  trust  and 
honor. 

He  preached  the  Annual  Sermon  before  the  A'ssoci- 
ation  in  1828,  and  again  in  1836.  He  served  them 
as  clerk  in  1829,  and  was  frequently  placed  upon 
important  committees,  and  in  other  positions  6f  re- 
sponsibility  where  great  prudence  and  wisdom  were 


REV.  JAMES  M.   ClIALLISS.  151 

the  qualities  demanded  for  the  service.  He  was  often 
invited  to  officiate  on  special  occasions,  and  his 
services  were  in  great  demand  by  his  brethren  at 
times  of  protracted,  or  extra  meetings,  in  which  he 
was  regarded  as  more  than  usually  happy  and  success- 
ful. In  this  service  he  seemed  to  take  special 
j)leasure,  and  never  refused  his  assistance  when  it  was 
possible  for  him  to  render  the  desired  aid.  His 
brethren  in  the  ministry  would  become  exhausted  and 
be  compelled  to  cease  their  labors,  but  he  seldom  grew 
weary  in  the  work.  His  physical  endurance  seemed 
equal  to  the  yearnings  of  his  heart  for  souls. 

He  came  among  his  brethren,  a  young  man,  dis- 
trustful of  himself  and  without  experience.  He  had 
grown  into  the  strength  of  his  manhood  among  them, 
and  had  remained  in  his  first  pastorate  till  every 
church  in  the  Association  had  changed  pastors,  ex- 
cepting old  Cohansey  and  Haddonfield,  where  the  ven- 
erable Smalley  and  Sisty  still  continued  their  work. 
His  removal  from  the  state  was  greatly  regretted,  not 
only  by  the  church  and  community  he  so  faithfully 
served,  but  by  all  the  surrounding  ministers  and 
churches,  with  whom  he  had  been  so  long  and  plea- 
santly associated,  and  among  whom,  by  earnest  and 
successful  labors,  he  had  shown  himself,  "  Approved 
of  God,  a  workman  that  needeth  not  to  be  ashamed, 
rightly  dividing  the  word  of  truth." 


CHAPTER  IX. 

SECOND      PASTORATE. 

April,  lS:iS—Api-;f,  1S45. 

'^PHE  old  Pennepeck,  or  Lower  Dublin  church  was 
*  located  near  Pennepeck  Creek  in  Lower  Dublin 
Township,  Philadelphia  County,  Pennsylvania,  about 
twelve  miles  north  east  of  "  Independence  Hall,"  on 
Chestnut  Street,  Philadelphia.  This  township  is  now 
a  part  of  the  incorporated  city.  The  surrounding- 
country  was  well  adapted  to  attract  the  attention  of 
the  lovers  of  the  beautiful  in  nature,  and  of  the  anx- 
ious tillers  of  the  soil.  It  was  sufficiently  rolling  and 
interspersed  with  ravines  and  living  streams  to  be 
picturesque,  yet  in  the  main  so  gently  undulating  that 
it  was  admirably  adapted  for  agricultural  purposes ; 
and  whei-e  artistic  taste  sought  to  relieve  the  friction 
of  plodding  toil  and  to  soften  the  scenes  of  its  hard 
and  repeated  struggles,  this  country  afforded  fine 
opportunities  for  the  blending  of  the  beautiful  and  the 
useful.  It  was  early  occupied,  soon  dotted  over  with 
152 


RF.V.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  153 

farms,  and  has  ever  maintained  its  high  agricultural 
reputation.  jNIany  gentlemen  of  wealth  and  taste 
have  recognized  the  combined  advantages  of  this  sec- 
tion, and  have  here  secured  country  residences ; 
erecting  beautiful  cottages  or  mansions,  some  of  which 
have  become  venerable  by  their  surroundings  of 
sturdy,  full-grown  trees,  transplanted  from  the  soil, 
while  here  and  there  still  linger  little  groves  of 
primeval  forest  trees,  which  have  heard  the  stealthy 
tread  of  the  lone  Indian  warrior,  and  the  thundering 
train  of  cars,  bearing  on  its  teeming  multitude  with 
lightning  speed ;  linking  the  strange  scenes  of  savage 
life  with  the  marvelous  triumphs  of  the  present  day. 

The  church  here  was  founded  amid  the  struggles  of 
the  early  settlers,  and  commenced  its  history  almost 
with  the  first  settlement  of  the  township.  In  1681, 
William  Penn  received  a  patent  from  Charles  II.  for 
the  territory  now  forming  the  state  of  Pennsylvania, 
and  in  August,  1662,  embarked  for  the  Delaware 
River,  where  he  arrived  safely  after  a  voyage  of  about 
six  weeks.  In  the  following  November,  he  held  his 
famous  treaty  with  the  Indians,  and  soon  after  laid 
out  the  plan  of  Philadelphia. 

About  forty-four  years  before  this,  in  1838,  the 
Swedes  established  a  colony  on  the  west  side  of  the 
Delaware.  "  They  conciliated  the  natives  and  pur- 
chased from  them  the  land  on  the  west  side  of  the 


154  J^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Delaware,  from  Cape  Henlopen  to  Sanhiekan,  or  the 
falls  at  Trenton,  and  inland  towards  the  Susquehanna. 
This  they  called  New  Sweden.  They  had  a  regular 
civil  and  military  government,  founded  upon  wise  and 
good  principles,  and  were  a  moral  and  thrifty  people. 
But  the  colony  was  small  and  feeble,  and  it  was  only 
at  a  few  points,  and  these  south  of  Philadelphia,  that 
actual  settlements  were  eftected.  Over  almost  all  of 
the  entire  territory  the  Indians  had  the  same  practical 
possession  that  they  had  for  centuries  previous.  This 
colony,  not  having  sufficient  support  from  the  distant 
mother  country,  was  conquered  by  the  Dutch  in  1655, 
and  in  nine  years  later,  with  other  Dutch  possessions, 
passed  under  English  jurisdiction." 

It  was  not  until  the  coming  of  Penn's  colony  that 
a  permanent  settlement  was  effected  north  of  Phila- 
delphia. 

In  less  than  two  years  after  Penn's  treaty  Mith  the 
Indians  a  company  of  Baptists  from  Rhode  Island  set- 
tled within  the  bounds  of  Pennsylvania  colony.  Ben- 
edict in  his  "  History  of  the  Baptists,"  gives  the  fol- 
lowing account  of  this  company  : 

"  The  history  of  this  first  company,  which  located 
in  this  government,  is  thus  given  by  Morgan  Ed- 
Avards,  in  his  history  of  Pennsylvania  Baptists.  In 
1684,  Thomas  Dungan  removed  from  Rhode  Island, 
and   settled   at  a   place  called  Cold  Spring,  in  Bucks 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  155 

County,  between  Bristol  and  Trenton.  This  Baptist 
preacher  and  pioneer  was  probably  accompanied  with 
associates  of  his  own  faith  in  his  removal  to  what  was 
then  regarded  as  a  long  journey  to  the  South.  Here 
he  founded  a  church  of  his  own  order,  which  in  the 
end  was  absorbed  by  the  next  company. 

"  This  Mr.  Dungan  was  the  minister  who  baptized 
and  ordained  Elias  Keach,  a  son  of  the  famous  Ben- 
jamin Keach,  of  London,  who  arrived  in  this  countiy 
in  1686.  The  church  founded  by  Mr.  Dungan  was 
broken  up  in  1702." 

According  to  the  same  authority,  '^  In  the  year 
1686,  one  John  Eaton,  George  Eaton,  and  Jane,  his 
wife,  Sarah  Eaton  and  Samuel  Jones,  members  of  a 
Baptist  church,  residing  in  Llanddewi  and  Nantmeal, 
in  Radnorshire  ;  also  John  Baker,  member  of  a  church 
in  Kilkenny,  in  Ireland,  and  one  Samuel  Vans,  from 
England,  arrived  and  settled  on  the  banks  of  the  Pen- 
nepeck.  In  1687,  Rev.  Elias  Keach,  of  London, 
come  among  them,  and  baptized  one  Joseph  Ashton, 
and  Jane,  his  wife,  William  Fisher,  and  John  Watts, 
which  increased  their  number  to  twelve  souls,  includ- 
ing the  minister.  These  twelve  did,  by  mutual  con- 
sent, form  themselves  into  a  church  in  January, 
1688,  choosing  Mr.  Keach  to  be  their  minister,  and 
Samuel  Vans  to  be  deacon.  Soon  after,  a  few  emi- 
grated Baptists,  in  the  province  of  West  Jersey,  joined 


156  li^y-  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

them,  also  those  whom  Mr.  Keach  baptized  at  the 
Falls,  Cold  Spring,  Burlington,  Cohansey,  Salem, 
Penn's  Neck,  Chester,  Philadelphia,  etc.  They  were 
all  one  church  and  Pennepeck  the  centre  of  union, 
where,  as  many  as  could,  met  to  celebrate  the  Lord's 
Supper ;  and  for  the  sake  of  distant  members,  they 
administered  the  ordinance  quarterly  at  Burlington, 
Cohansey,  Chester,  and  Philadelphia.  Thns,  for  some 
time,  continued  their  Zion,  with  lengthened  cords,  till 
the  brethren  in  remote  parts  set  about  forming  them- 
selves into  distinct  churches.  By  these  detachments  it 
was  reduced  to  narrow  bounds,  but  continued  among 
the  churches  as  a  mother  in  the  midst  of  her  many 
daughters." 

Thus  this  old  church  and  mother  of  churches  was 
organized  during  the  very  incipiency  of  the  settlement, 
while  yet  the  homes  of  its  members  were  in  the  midst 
of  the  Indian's  hunting  grounds.  The  JSTeshammies 
and  Shackamaxons  were  still  ling-erino;  in  the  old 
homes  along  the  Delaware,  and  the  echo  of  the  Indian 
Avar  song  had  scarcely  died  away,  when  the  songs  of 
praise  to  God  arose  from  an  assembled  churc-h  of 
Christ,  and  the  wilderness  and  the  solitary  place  was 
glad. 

The  first  pastor  of  the  church.  Rev.  Elias  Keach, 
returned  to  England  in  1702,  but  the  church  con- 
tinued   to    enjoy    the    labors    of  such    men    as    Rev. 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  157 

John  Watts,  Rev.  Samuel  Jones,  Rev.  Evan  Morgan, 
Rev.  Abel  Morgan,  Samuel  Jones,  D.  D.,  Rev.  P.  P. 
Vanhorn,  and  Rev.  David  Jones,  men  of  sterling 
worth  and  great  power  and  usefulness.  Some  of  these 
early  pastors  })reached  statedly  in  Philadelphia  and 
other  places,  doing  a  good  work  in  extending  Bible 
truths  and  organizing  Baptist  churches,  and  gathering 
many  precious  souls  into  the  fold  of  Christ.  The  old 
church  long  maintained  the  position  gained  by  her 
priority,  and  was  respected  and  loved  by  surrounding 
churches  as  a  "mother  in  Israel." 

This  church  was  the  originator  and  a  constituent 
member  of  the  Philadelphia  Baj)tist  Association, 
formed  in  1707,  the  oldest  association  in  America, — 
and  remained  a  member  of  this  venerable  body  for  one 
hundred  and  twenty-five  years. 

In  July,  1832,  the  Central  Union  Association  was 
formed  and  this  church  was  a  constituent  of  that  body. 

Here  on  this  field,  all  crowded  with  reminiscences 
of  the  early  struggles  of  Baptists  in  America,  and 
their  early  efforts  to  propagate  the  gospel  of  Christ ; 
with  this  church  of  more  than  one  hundred  and  fifty 
years  of  history,  and  with  the  memory  of  the  lives  and 
labors  of  men  who  had  toiled  long  and  faithfully  in 
the  pastorate,  and  who  stood  in  the  very  front  ranks 
of  the  ministry  of  their  day,  Mr.  Challiss  entered  upon 
his  second  pastoral  charge. 


158  BEV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS. 

Early  in  December,  1837,  Mr.  ChalHss  received  an 
urgent  invitation  to  visit  the  Lower  Dublin  Church 
and  to  preach  in  view  of  settling  with  them.  In  the 
latter  })art  of  the  month  he  visited  them  and  spent  a 
few  days  among  them  and  preached  sev^eral  times. 
The  visit  proved  acceptable  to  both  parties.  On 
January  7th,  1838,  the  church  extended  to  him  a 
unanimous  call  to  become  their  pastor ;  as  will  be  seen 
from  the  following  letter  addressed  to  him  by  their 
order :  "■  After  you  left  us,  we  endeavored  to  give 
notice  as  far  as  we  had  it  in  our  power  to  do,  among 
the  church  and  congregation,  of  the  business  which 
would  probably  come  before  it  on  the  following  Lord's 
Day.  The  intelligence  was  received  with  decided 
approbation  by  the  church,  particularly  by  those  con- 
sidered as  the  leading  members.  After  preaching,  on 
the  Lord's  Day,  the  propriety  of  giving  you  a  call  to 
become  our  permanent  pastor  was  presented.  Solemn 
prayer  was  addressed  to  our  heavenly  Father  for 
guidance  and  direction,  by  two  deacons  and  another 
brother,  and  an  election  was  held,  by  ballot,  for  the 
above  named  purpose ;  the  result  of  which  was  be- 
lieved to  be  entirely  unanimous  for  Brother  Challiss 
to  be  our  pastor."  On  the  following  Sunday  he 
visited  them  again,  and  preached,  and  being  satisfied 
with  the  unanimity  of  the  church  and  congregation  in 
calling  him,  he  gave  notice  that  he  accepted  the  call 


REV.  JAMES  M.  CHALLISS.  159 

and  would  enter  upon  the  pastorate  as  soon  as  he 
could  close  his  engagement  with  the  Upper  Freehold 
Church.  The  minutes  of  the  Lower  Dublin  Church 
present  the  following  record:  "March  31,  1838. 
Meeting  of  preparation.  Divine  service  by  Brother 
Challiss,  who  this  day  enters  upon  his  labors  and 
duties  among  us  as  pastor  of  this  church  and  congre- 
gation. Brother  and  Sister  Challiss  received  the  hand 
of  fellowship  by  Deacon  Thomas  Miles." 

"May  17,  1838.  Brother  Challiss  was  installed 
pastor.  Revs.  Jos.  Sheppard,  C.  W.  Mulford,  and  W. 
S.  Hall,  council  present."  In  a  written  agreement 
with  this  church,  signed  by  Mr.  Challiss  and  the 
Trustees,  and  dated  January  15,  1838,  he  promised  to 
perform  the  usual  duties  of  a  pastor,  and  they  agreed 
"  to  give  him  yearly,  and  every  year,  the  sum  of  six 
hundred  dollars,  payments  to  be  made  quarterly." 

He  says,  "  I  located  my  family  in  Bustleton,  on  a 
handsome  home  which  I  purchased  there,  costing  me 
thirty-five  hundred  dollars."  Having  thus  secured  a 
permanent  and  pleasant  residence  for  his  family,  he 
was  prepared  to  enter  freely  and  fully  upon  his  work. 
It  was  with  no  ordinary  feelings  of  interest  and 
anxiety,  that  Mr.  Challiss  accepted  this  pastorate  and 
entered  upon  his  labors  here  as  successor  to  the  men 
who  had  so  long  and  ably  ministered  to  this  church.  « 

He  felt  that  the  very  history  of  this  ancient  body  gave 
14 


160  KEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

great  interest  and  responsibility  to  his  position;  and 
that  the  character  of  his  predecessors  created  expecta- 
tions in  reference  to  a  new  pastor  that  made  the 
position  no  little  embarrassing. 

Amid  the  sleeping  dust  of  the  men  of  five  genera- 
tions stood  their  venerable  church  edifice,  bearing  the 

inscription : — 

"built  1707, 

enlarged   1774, 

REBUILT   1805, 

S.  JONES,  D.D., 

PASTOR." 

And  in  all  the  region  around,  were  places  sacred  in 
memory  from  some  hallowed  associations  of  the  past. 
It  would  be  a  strange  Baptist  heart  that  felt  no  im- 
pressions and  gained  no  inspiration,  amid  the  cher- 
ished memories  which  cluster  around  this  place  and 
people. 

Mr.  Challiss  was  not  insensible  to  these  surround- 
ings. He  says,  "From  my  field  of  labor  at  Upper 
Freehold,  I  was  called  and  at  length  induced  to  sep- 
arate by  a  united  call  from  the  Lower  Dublin  Baptist 
Church,  near  Bustleton,  Pennsylvania.  This  I  ac- 
cepted after  much  prayer,  and  entered  upon  my  labors 
there,  April,  1838.  Here  I  found  myself  surrounded 
by  many  weighty  and  responsible  duties  which  I 
endeavored  to  discharge  in  the  fear  of  God,  depending 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  \Ql 

upon  the  blessing  of  God  and  the  presence  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  for  success.  I  felt  greatly  my  insuffi- 
ciency, but  I  knew  it  was  not  by  might  nor  by  power, 
but  by  his  Spirit,  that  sinners  would  be  converted, 
and  therefore  I  went  forward  trusting  in  the  Lord.  I 
found  this  a  very  large  and  important  field  of  labor, 
and  so  continued  to  work  on  in  the  pastoral  office 
through  much  hope  and  fear — hope  because  I  knew 
the  cause  was  God's  and  must  prevail — fear  because 
of  my  own  weakness  and  the  disparagement  between 
my  abilities  and  my  worthy  predecessors,  such  as  Dr. 
Samuel  Jones." 

But  the  cordial  welcome  of  the  brethren  and  friends 
here  encouraged  his  heart  and  greatly  nerved  him  for 
the  work.  About  two  weeks  after  reaching  Lower 
Dublin  he  wrote  familiarly  to  an  old  friend  at  Upper 
Freehold,  "  We  arrived  safely,  with  scarcely  a  single 
article  injured.  On  reaching  our  new  home  we  found 
the  friends  here  waiting  our  coming.  They  had 
provided  sumptuously  for  our  reception — so  abund- 
antly that  our  family  has  been  supplied  ever  since 
from  this  abundant  provision.  Our  new  home  is 
pleasant,  and  we  like  the  situation  much.  Our  breth- 
ren continue  to  'show  us  no  little  kindness.'  The 
prospects  thus  far  are  certainly  very  gratifying.  We 
had  a  delightful  meeting  with  the  church  last  Lord's 


162  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

Day.     The  prayer  meeting  in  the  evening  exceeded 
almost  any  one  I  ever  attended." 

His  confidence  in  laboring  in  this  old  and  import- 
ant field  was  also  strengthened  by  the  very  kind  re- 
ception given  him  by  his  fellow-pastors  and  brethren 
of  the  Association.  He  had  been  in  the  state  but  two 
months,  when  the  Central  Union  Association,  of 
which  the  church  was  then  a  member,  met  in  their 
annual  session,  at  Windsor.  Mr.  Challiss  was  elected 
Moderator  of  the  body,  and  appointed  as  one  of  their 
delegates  to  the  State  Missionary  Convention,  which 
was  to  meet  at  Milton,  in  October. 

In  a  digest  of  the  letters  from  the  churches,  pub- 
lished in  the  Associational  minutes  for  that  year,  we 
find  the  following:  "The  letter  from  Lower  Dublin 
represents  the  church  as  having  passed  through  many 
and  severe  trials.  In  addition  to  the  removal  of  its 
pastor,  it  has  experienced  the  blighting  influence  of 
dissensions  among  its  members.  But  through  the 
merciful  interposition  of  God,  this  season  of  strife  and 
disaster  has  now  passed,  and  peace  and  concord  are 
restored.  The  vacancy  in  the  pastoral  office  has  been 
happily  and  unanimously  filled  by  the  settlement  of 
Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  in  whose  ability  and  faithfulness 
and  success  in  winning  souls  to  Christ,  the  fullest  con- 
fidence is  expressed.     Under  his  ministry  professors 


EEV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  163 

are  revived  and  the  congregation  is  increased,  and 
everything  indicates  the  return  of  prosperity." 

Such  was  the  testimony  of  the  church  in  reference 
to  their  recent  previous  condition  and  the  favorable 
change  already  manifest  under  the  labors  of  their 
newly  settled  pastor — a  change  for  which  they  were 
devoutly  thankful. 

The  church  and  congregation  seem  to  have  been 
greatly  prepossessed  in  favor  of  Mr.  Challiss  as  their 
pastor.  This,  perhaps,  was  owing,  in  part,  to  the  fact 
of  his  having  assisted  their  pastor,  some  years  previ- 
ous, during  a  season  of  extra  meetings,  when  his 
labors  were,  in  a  very  special  manner,  blessed,  but 
chiefly  from  his  known  fidelity  and  success  in  his  for- 
mer pastorate.  He  was  not  a  stranger  to  this  people, 
nor  were  the  results  of  his  previous  labors  unknown 
to  them. 

They  gave  him  a  unanimous  call  to  become  their 
pastor,  and  heartily  welcomed  him  and  his  family  to 
their  new  home,  and  seemed  to  feel  the  fullest  confi- 
dence that  his  labors  would  be  blessed  of  God  to 
the  reviving  of  their  ancient  church  and  the  ingather- 
ing of  souls  to  Christ.  All  this  was  greatly  in  his 
favor  and  added  no  little  to  the  assurance  of  his  suc- 
cess. 

He  fully  reciprocated  these  kind  feelings,  and  en- 
tered at  once,  and  with  all  his  might  upon  the  work 

14* 


164  ^^^'   JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

of  his  second  pastorate ;  and  into  fullest  sympathy 
with  all  the  wants  and  interests  of  the  people  of  his 
new  charge.  Very  soon  God  gave  such  evidence  of 
the  labors  of  pastor  and  people,  that  the  confidence 
and  good  feeling  of  both  were  strengthened  and  their 
trust  in  God's  promise  to  favor  Zion  was  confirmed. 
They  had  sown  in  tears  and  were  now  permitted  to 
reaj)  in  joy — the  fields  had  grown  white  and  the  har- 
vest time  had  come. 

Mr.  Challiss  says :  "  With  a  united  church  and 
much  faithful  labor  I  soon  began  to  see  indications  of 
good  in  the  congregation.  Shortly  after  this,  as  our 
first  fruits,  three  men  came  before  the  church  for  bap- 
tism, which  much  encouraged  us  all,  there  having 
been  no  baptisms  for  a  long  time.  From  this  little 
beginning  the  cloud  of  mercy  seemed  to  hover  over  us 
and  to  spread  out  and  enlarge."  In  1839,  the  church 
reported  to  the  Association  that  twenty-one  had  been 
baptized  during  the  year,  that  they  had  a  membership 
of  219,  and  that  their  congregations  were  large. 

Soon  after  this  meeting  of  the  Association  there 
were  evident  tokens  of  a  more  general  revival  among 
the  people  at  Lower  Dublin.  In  June  and  August 
and  October  they  visited  the  baptismal  waters  and  re- 
joiced over  additions  to  their  number.  A  deep  reli- 
gious feeling  seemed  to  pervade  the  entire  community, 
and  many   were   asking,    "What   must   I   do  to   be 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  1(35 

saved?"  For  four  successive  Sundays  In  the  month  of 
December  they  gathered  at  their  Jordan,  and  thirty- 
three  more  followed  Christ  in  baptism.  The  work 
continued  for  several  months.  The  pastor's  heart  was 
full  of  joy  and  his  hands  diligent  in  work.  He 
always  seemed  to  be  in  his  favorite  element  during 
times  of  revival.  He  felt  a  peculiar  pleasure  in  point- 
ing inquiring  souls  to  Christ,  and  directing  young 
converts  into  the  fuller  reception  of  Bible  truth.  And 
now  that  God  was  so  abundantly  blessing  the  efforts 
of  his  people,  this  pastor,  full  of  gratitude  and  rejoic- 
ing, was  untiring  in  his  labors  to  continue  the  work. 
He  diligently  sought  out  all  around,  and  especially 
those  in  families  connected  with  the  church ,  and  by 
personal  appeals  and  earnest  prayer,  labored  for  their 
conversion. 

The  church  was  much  encouraged  and  strength- 
ened in  its  work  and  by  its  results.  Among  those  re- 
ceived into  their  fellowship  that  season  were  many 
earnest  workers,  some  of  whom,  in  after  years,  became 
the  efficient  office  bearers  of  the  church.  Zion  was 
thus  recruited  again  with  men,  to  fill  the  places  of  the 
faithful  ones  who  had  entered  upon  their  eternal  rest, 
and  to  carry  on  the  warfare  of  the  conquering  Re- 
deemer. 

At  the  following  Association,  held  at  West  Chester, 
in  June,  1840,  the  report  of  the  church  showed  signs 


166  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

of  hopeful  progress,  as  the  following  digest  of  their 
letter  to  that  body  will  exhibit.  "  This  is  a  '  Total 
Abstinence'  church,  and  states  that  the  past  year  has 
been  one  of  the  right  hand  of  the  Lord.  Those  of  the 
church  who  were  widely  separated  have  been  united, 
and  those  hateful  and  hating  one  another  have  cast 
away  the  weapons  of  their  hostility  and  again  em- 
braced each  other  in  the  bonds  of  peace.  They  had 
enjoyed  peace  in  a  measure,  but  it  was  a  carnal, 
treacherous  peace.  This  some  began  to  feel  and 
lament,  and  this  led  to  extra  efforts  in  prayer,  con- 
ference, preaching,  and  the  circulating  of  tracts. 
While  thus  engaged  the  Lord  visited  them,  and  many 
were  added  to  the  church.  A  remarkable  change  was 
felt  throughout  the  whole  neighborhood,  and  the 
spirit  of  benevolence  grew."  During  the  year,  forty- 
seven  were  added  by  baptism,  and  their  total  mem- 
bership had  increased  to  two  hundred  and  fifty-five. 

Agreeably  to  the  appointment  of  the  previous  year, 
Mr.  Challiss  preached  the  "Annual  Missionary  Ser- 
mon" before  the  Association,  from  the  words,  "And 
he  that  winneth  souls  is  wise."  Recognizing  the  con- 
version of  souls,  as  the  primary  and  great  end  of  all  mis- 
sionary Avork;  and  with  his  heart  full  of  the  gracious 
experience  of  the  past  year, — God's  willingness  abun- 
dantly to  bless  the  faithful  efforts  of  his  people, — he 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  167 

urged  upon  his  brethren  the  doctrine  of  his  text  with 
peculiar  tenderness,  fervency,  and  earnestness. 

During  the  following  year  the  labors  of  Mr.  Chal- 
liss  were  not  without  some  good  results,  but  there  was 
nothing  of  special  or  marked  interest.  Eighteen  were 
added  to  the  church  by  baptism,  a  good  degree  of  har- 
mony prevailed,  and  the  general  work  moved  on  in  a 
gradual  and  hopeful  progress. 

At  the  meeting  of  the  next  Association,  held  at 
Norristown,  Mr.  Challiss,  according  to  appointment, 
preached  the  opening  sermon.  His  text  on  this  occa- 
sion was,  "  For  if  that  which  is  done  away  was  glori- 
ous, much  more  that  which  remaineth  is  glorious." 

That  this  sermon  was  received  with  favor  by  the 
body  may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  during  their 
next  annual  meeting  Mr.  Challiss,  though  not  then  a 
member  of  the  body,  preached  before  them  again  at 
their  special  request.  Thus  for  three  successive  years 
he  appeared  before  his  brethren  of  the  Association,  at 
their  request  as  a  preacher  at  their  Annual  meeting. 

In  October,  1841,  the  Lower  Dublin  Church  "Re- 
solved to  withdraw  from  the  Central  Union  Associa- 
tion, on  account  of  the  agitation  of  the  subject  of 
slavery  in  that  body."  In  the  minutes  of  the  Phila- 
delphia Association  of  the  same  year,  we  find  in  the 
report  of  the  "  Committee  of  the  State  of  Religion," 
the  following  allusion  to  the  Lower  Dublin  Church : 


Igg  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

"  This  mother  of  us  all  was  received,  at  her  request,  to 
her  former  stand  on  the  minutes,  to  the  joy  of  all  who 
have  been  acquainted  with  her  faith,  and  labors  of 
love  in  the  Lord."  By  this  change  on  the  part  of  the 
church,  Mr.  Challiss  became  a  member  of  the  Oldest 
Association  in  the  country,  and  intimately  associated 
with  the  large  number  of  ministers  belonging  to  this 
body.  He  rejoiced  in  the  increased  advantages  of 
these  new  relations,  but  with  his  usual  self-disparage- 
ment he  shrank  from  their  increased  publicity  and 
responsibility. 

A  few  months  after  these  changes,  Mr.  Challiss 
entered  upon  an  experience  which  greatly  tried  his 
faith  and  marred  no  little  the  joys  of  his  pastoral  rela- 
tion: a  time  of  spiritual  dearth,  followed  by  serious 
dissensions  in  the  church  was  now  encountered. 
During  the  first  four  years  of  his  labors  with  this 
people,  more  than  usual  prosperity  had  attended  the 
church,  and  everything  had  moved  on  pleasantly, 
with  only  an  occasional  little  cloud  to  obscure  the  sky. 
But  now  came  a  season  comparatively  fruitless.  The 
good  seed  was  faithfully  sown  by  the  anxious  pastor, 
but  very  little  fruit  was  gathered  in.  The  church  and 
community  seemed  almost  insensible  to  religious  obli- 
gations. And  while  they  slept  the  enemy  came  and 
sowed  tares,  and  these  for  a  season  threatened  to 
choke  out  the  wheat ;  yet  it  was  difficult  to  gather  up 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS  169 

the   tares   without   rooting   up   also  the  wheat   with 
them. 

The  occasion  of  this  discord,  strange  to  say,  was 
music,  "  Whose  very  beauty  is  in  harmony."  It  was 
thought  best  by  many  in  the  church  to  have  instru- 
mental music  to  aid  the  singing  in  their  public  worship. 
Some  objected  to  this,  and  were  captious  and  unrea- 
sonable in  their  objections.  The  matter  was  deferred 
for  a  time,  but  finally  the  issue  came. 

It  was  in  the  early  summer,  a  pleasant  Lord's  Day 
morning.  All  was  beautiful  without;  nature  was  in 
sweet  harmony  with  God,  and  vocal  with  his  praise. 
But  within  the  old  sanctuary  how  different  the  scene ! 
Where  peace  and  love  should  reign  supreme,  the  pro- 
fessed disciples  of  Jesus  allowed  preference  and  preju- 
dice to  create  discord,  mar  the  beauty  of  God's  house, 
bring  dishonor  upon  the  cause  of  Christ,  and  rob 
their  own  souls  of  the  joys  of  his  presence.  The 
instruments  of  accompaniment  were  present.  The 
opening  hymn  was  read,  but  scarcely  had  the  strings 
vibrated  for  the  first  note  when  several  members  of 
the  church,  as  by  concert  of  action,  rose  up  and  with 
no  amiable  tread  hastened  from  the  house.  The 
pastor  was  sad  and  grieved.  He  desired  both  the 
prosperity  and  unity  of  the  church.  Some  of  the  dis- 
affected brethren  were  old  members  and  good  men, 
and  doubtless  honest  in  their  opposition  tr)  these  new 


170  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

measures ;  but  certaiuly  wrong  in  the  sj)irit  and  man- 
ner of  expressing  this  opposition. 

Mr.  Challiss  knew  "  how  good  and  how  pleasant  it 
is  for  brethren  to  dwell  together  in  unity/'  and  that 
upon  such  the  Lord  commanded  his  blessing ;  and  he 
feared  that  the  disaffected  ones  would  become  centres 
of  influences  which  would  greatly  disturb  the  peace 
and  hinder  the  prosperity  of  Zion.  Although  person- 
ally in  favor  of  the  introduction  of  instrumental  music, 
he  sought  to  restore  harmony  among  his  brethren  by 
advising  the  removal  of  the  occasion  of  the  offence. 
He  said  to  the  advocates  of  instrumental  music,  "  This 
will  never  do.  Great  discord  will  come  among;  us 
and  the  church  and  cause  of  Christ  will  be  injured. 
You  had  better  banish  the  instruments."  The  advice 
of  the  pastor  was  accepted  with  seeming  deference. 
The  next  Lord's  Day  came  and  a  stranger  occupied 
the  pulpit  by  exchange  with  the  pastor.  The  first 
hymn  was  announced,  but  there  were  no  stringed  in- 
struments, and  no  sweet  singers  in  Israel  to  respond. 
A  marked  silence  ensued,  sufficiently  embarrassing  to 
the  visiting  preacher,  and  no  little  mortifying  to  many 
of  the  church.  Another  phase  of  this  difficulty  had 
develojjed.  The  friends  of  instrumental  music  had 
concluded  that  their  preferences  were  just  as  much  en- 
titled to  respect  as  the  prejudices  of  those  opposed  to  it, 
and  as  the  latter  had  refused  to  listen  to  vocal  music 


REV   JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  \']\ 

with  instrumental  accompaniment,  so  they  declined  to 
furnish  the  vocal  without  the  instrumental. 

Here  then  was  a  direct  issue  and  an  open  rupture 
between  the  two  parties.  The  dilemma  had  two  horns, 
and  to  escape  one  was  to  be  caught  on  the  other.  The 
pastor  had  sought  peace,  and  lo  !  he  found  war.  In 
after  years  he  often  playfully  alluded  to  this  difficulty 
as  the  "  Musical  War,"  but  there  was  no  music  in  it 
then  to  his  sensitive  and  peace-loving  heart.  He  felt 
sad  enough  and  greatly  perplexed,  not  so  much  on  his 
own  account,  but  on  account  of  the  interest  of  the 
church  and  the  cause  of  Christ,  It  was  the  great 
difficulty  of  all  his  pastoral  relations.  The  church  by 
a  decided  vote  sustained  the  use  of  instrumental  music, 
and  finally  God  graciously  interposed  to  restore  the 
harmony  which  in  the  infirmities  of  the  flesh,  may  be 
disturbed  even  among  the  best  of  men. 

Mr.  Challiss  makes  this  allusion  to  this  time  of  trial. 
"  At  the  time  of  my  settlement  with  this  church,  in- 
strumental music  was  beginning  to  be  introduced  into 
the  churches  in  connection  with  public  worship.  By 
invitation  of  the  deacons,  it  was  introduced  into  our 
place  of  worship.  But  Avith  it  the  enemy  came  in  like 
a  flood.  A  few  members  became  very  much  offended, 
and  went  out  and  sowed  seeds  of  discord,  so  that  a 
fearful  state  of  things  was  the  issue  for  something  like 

two  years.     But  at  length  some  began  to  sigh  and  cry 
15 


172  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

over  the  desolation  of  Zion,  and  pray  God  to  return 
and  revive  his  work  in  the  midst  of  so  much  declen- 
sion. We  set  apart  the  first  day  of  the  year  for 
humbling  ourselves  before  God.  The  Lord  appeared 
again  where  he  had  often  appeared.  A  great  breaking 
down  was  the  consequence.  This  state  of  things  con- 
tinued till  the  old  leaven  was  purged  out,  and  the 
church  began  to  do  her  first  works  over  again,  and 
finally  it  issued  in  a  precious  revival,  when  more  than 
forty  souls  were  hopefully  converted  to  Christ." 

While  in  the  midst  of  these  troubles,  the  church 
reported  to  the  Association,  "  That  events  of  a  painful 
nature  had  transpired  during  the  past  year,  but  the 
hope  is  cherished  that  unanimity  will  soon  be  restored 
again."  This  hope  though  deferred  for  a  season  was 
ultimately  and  very  graciously  realized. 

In  a  letter  to  an  old  friend,  dated  April,  1843,  he 
said,  "  As  a  church  we  have  been  greatly  blessed  with 
a  precious  revival.  Since  the  first  of  February  I  have 
had  the  pleasure  to  welcome  into  church  fellowship 
forty  precious  souls,  of  whom  seven  were  baptized  last 
Lord's  Day.  But  we  have  not  been  without  our 
trouble.  The  introduction  of  instrumental  music,  the 
flute  and  bass  violin,  gave  much  uneasiness,  and 
created  no  little  discord  among  the  members.  But 
the  presence  of  God  in  the    happy  I'evival    removed 


REV.  JAMBS  M.   CHALLISS.  173 

principally  all  the  bitterness,  and  now  we  are  going  on 
happily  united." 

At  the  next  Association,  held  with  the  Fifth 
Church,  Philadelphia,  in  October,  1843,  the  church 
reported  forty-two,  received  by  baptism  during  the 
year,  and  a  membership  of  three  hvmdred  and  two. 
The  abstract  of  their  letter  says,  "  From  the  threat- 
ened appearances  at  the  beginning  of  the  year  they 
were  released,  and  after  several  prayer-meetings — the 
result  of  the  conviction  that  they  had  discussed  the 
question  long  enough — the  Lord  gave  joy  and  pros- 
perity. No  sooner  did  the  church  get  right,  than  the 
congregation  was  awakened  and  sinners  asked  what 
they  should  do  to  be  saved.  A  blessed  revival 
followed." 

During  this  season  of  revival,  there  were  many 
instances  of  the  special  workings  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
and  marked  triumphs  of  sovereign  grace.  Indeed  the 
revival  itself  was  a  wonder  to  many.  That  God 
should  deign  to  bless  so  signally  a  people,  many  of 
whom  were  so  recently  alienated  from  each  other  and 
engaged  in  bickering  and  strife,  and  so  unmindful  of 
their  covenant  obligations  to  God,  seems  strange  to 
those  who  have  not  observed  his  overruling  provi- 
dences or  noted  the  workings  of  his  sovereign  purpo- 
ses. The  "Day  of  Pentecost"  followed  not  long  after 
Peter's  denial  of  his  Master,  and  the  worldly  seeking 


174  REV.  JAMES  M    CHALLISS. 

of  some  of  his  fellow  disciples.  But  the  "  Cock  crew 
and  Peter  went  out  and  wept  bitterly,"  and  the  disci- 
ples were  found,  "  With  one  accord  in  prayer  and 
supplication,"  and  soon  the  day  of  Pentecost  was  fully 
come.  So  in  the  history  of  God's  people  generally, 
and  of  individual  churches,  times  of  spiritual  declen- 
sion and  backsliding  and  bitter  contentions  or  great 
depression  from  opposing  influences  are  often  so  over- 
ruled in  providence,  that  they  seem  to  induce  anxiety 
of  soul,  humility  before  God,  and  confession  of  wrong 
done  to  others,  and  also  to  awaken  an  unwonted  faith 
and  trust  in  God's  promises. 

Thus  God  appears  for  the  deliverance  of  his  people, 
and  graciously  turns  to  their  good  and  his  own  glory 
the  imperfections  and  infirmities  of  their  natures,  and 
makes  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  him.  And  so 
clearly  is  this  the  work  of  sovereign  grace,  that  his 
people  are  joyfully  constrained  to  say,  "The  Lord 
hath  done  great  things  for  us,  whereof  we  are  glad." 

In  this  revival,  the  alienation,  which  in  some  in- 
stances had  become  bitter  and  confirmed,  was  subdued. 
Many  in  the  congregation  who  were  regarded  as 
almost  "gospel  hardened,"  were  brought  to  feel  their 
need  of  Christ,  and  to  cry  for  mercy.  The  proud- 
hearted  and  rebellious  humbled  themselves  and  be- 
came as  little  children,  and  many  were  led  to  rejoice 
in  the  love  of  Christ.     It  was  truly  a  happy  and  aus- 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS.  175 

picious  time  for  the  church,  not  only  relieving  them  of 
the  sad  dissensions  of  the  past,  and  removing  their 
reproach  before  the  world,  but  adding  to  their 
strength,  by  increase  of  their  number  and  renewed 
experience  of  the  goodness  and  forbearance  of  God. 
The  pastor  was  cheered,  and  girded  anew  for  his 
Master's  work. 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Association,  in  1843,  Mr.  Chal- 
liss  preached  the  opening  sermon,  according  to  pre- 
vious appointment.  He  felt  that  he  did  not  speak 
with  his  usual  liberty,  and  said,  that  the  presence  of 
so  many  of  his  ministering  brethren,  of  opportunities 
and  abilities  superior  to  his  own,  greatly  embarrassed 
him.  While  he  was  disposed  to  speak  of  this  effort 
as  a  failure  to  present  the  truths  of  the  text  as  he 
ought  to  do;  yet  to  one  present,  who  was  just  conse- 
crating himself  to  the  ministry,  the  sermon  was  full 
of  interest,  and  the  speaker  appeared  as  a  model 
preacher.  More  than  twenty-five  years  have  passed 
and  the  impressions  of  that  sermon  have  not  ended 
their  mission  on  at  least  one  heart. 

Mr.  Challiss  continued  his  labors  at  Lower  Dublin, 
with  no  further  special  interest,  till  November,  1844, 
when  he  presented  his  resignation.  The  question  of 
its  acceptance  came  up  for  action  at  the  regular  church 
meeting,  held  on  the  following  week.  The  vote  was 
taken  by  ballot,  and  almost  four  to  one  voted  against 

15* 


176  REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS. 

accepting  his  resignation.  A  committee  was  ap- 
pointed to  inform  him  of  the  results.  This  com- 
mittee reported  that,  "  That  while  Mr.  Challiss  offered 
to  the  church  his  thanks  for  that  degree  of  unanimity 
which  was  manifested,  he  still  solicited  longer  time  to 
decide  as  to  his  future  course  of  conduct," 

For  some  months  past  he  had  felt  a  growing  convic- 
tion that  he  ought  to  seek  another  field  of  labor.  This 
matured  into  his  determination  to  leave  Lower  Dub- 
lin, and  so,  in  good  faith,  he  tendered  his  resignation. 
He  says ;  "  I  became  convinced,  from  various  causes, 
that  my  usefuln,ess  here  was  principally  at  an  end." 
But  the  action  of  the  church  led  him  to  question  for  a 
time  the  correctness  of  his  own  conclusions.  After  a 
careful  and  prayerful  review  of  all  the  facts  and  inter- 
ests he  resolved  to  adhere  to  his  purpose,  and  accord- 
ingly, on  the  first  of  January,  1845,  he  publicly  an- 
nounced his  intention  to  leave  the  field,  and  gave  due 
notice  to  that  effect,  that  he  should  close  his  pastoral 
labor  with  the  church  on  the  first  of  April. 

Fifteen  years  after  leaving  Lower  Dublin,  he  made 
the  following  record  of  his  labors  there:  "I  continued 
to  labor  there,  through  much  fear  and  anxiety,  and 
with  a  good  degree  of  success  for  seven  years  of 
patient  toil  and  ardent  hope.  While  settled  with  that 
church  I  baptized  one  hundred  and  thirty-seven  on 
profession  of  their  faith  in  Jesus,  and  had  the  pleasure 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  177 

to  see  the  old  church  in  a  greatly  improved  condition, 
compared  with  what  they  were  when  I  settled  with 
them.  One  thing  comforts  me  much  in  reviewing  my 
labors,  which  is,  that  many  I  have  had  the  pleasure  of 
welcoming  into  church  fellowship,  have  worn  so  well, 
and  that  a  number  of  them  have  proved  pillars  in  the 
church  of  God.  The  active  deacons  of  the  church  for 
years  past  have  been  my  spiritual  children. 

"  After  the  lapse  of  seven  years  the  cloud  of  Provi- 
dence seemed  to  move,  and  I  felt  it  my  duty  to  follow 
the  indications  of  Providence." 

There  are  many  pleasant  incidents  connected  with 
the  pastorate  of  Mr.  Challiss  at  Lower  Dublin,  but  we 
can  notice  only  a  few.  The  meeting,  preparatory  to 
the  great  revival  of  his  pastorate  there  commenced  in 
mid-summer,  the  busy  time  of  the  year  with  farmers. 
Most  thought  it  an  unseasonable  time,  but  Mr.  Chal- 
liss persisted  in  the  work,  believing  the  promise  of 
God,  "  They  that  sow  in  tears  shall  reap  in  joy,"  and 
that  "  the  set  time  to  favor  Zion  is  come  when  God's 
servants  take  pleasure  in  her  stones  and  favor  the  dust 
thereof." 

He  labored  on  with  little  promise  of  good  results 
until  his  own  faith  was  severely  tried.  Just  at  this 
point  he  received  the  following  note  from  an  unknown 
writer. 


178  J^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

"  Dear  sir :  I  would  have  you  pray  for  me.  Pray 
that  the  Lord  will  give  me  repentance.  I  have 
not  yet  found  my  place  of  repentance,  though  I  have 
attempted  to  seek  for  it,  and  that  with  tears.  I 
have  been  on  kind  of  praying  terms  with  God  for 
years.  For  the  last  year  I  have  scarcely  slept  a  night 
without  oifering  some  kind  of  prayer  to  God  for  repen- 
tance of  sin,  but  find  none.  Will  you  take  such  a 
case  in  hand  ?  Take  it  to  the  church.  Tell  Mr.  O — 
to  take  me  to  his  closet,  out  to  his  hay-mow,  to  the 
field,  and  to  his  grove  and  pray  for  me." 

Thus  wrote  an  earnest  soul,  seeking  salvation. 
This  gave  encouragement  to  the  pastor,  and  stirred  up 
the  hearts  of  his  brethren.  This  was  just  what  the 
pastor  wanted, — to  take  such  cases  before  God  in 
prayer  and  to  point  such  inquiring  souls  to  the  Lamb 
of  God.  Now  the  work  went  on.  There  was  a  gen- 
tleman living  near  the  church  who  had  been  at  meet- 
ing but  a  few  times  in  the  past  six  years.  He  had 
lost  a  child.  Mr.  Challiss  preached  at  the  funeral  the 
words,  "  Is  it  well  with  thee  ?"  He  thought  it  was 
not  well  with  him,  but  his  heart  was  proud  and  stub- 
born. The  wife  came  to  the  meetings  and  was  soon 
deeply  anxious.  Mr.  Challiss  visited  them.  The 
husband  was  not  at  home  and  an  urgent  invitation 
was  left  for  him  to  attend  the  meetings.  He  said,  cap- 
tiously, "  I  have  no  time  to  go  to  the  meetings,     I  must 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  179 

stay  at  home  and  husk  my  corn.  If  Mr.  Challiss  will 
come  and  husk  for  me,  I  will  go  to  meeting."  The 
pastor  sent  him  word  that  he  would  help  him  husk  if 
he  would  attend  the  meetings.  He  finally  concluded 
to  go  once.  He  was  interested,  and  continued  to  at- 
tend. Within  two  months  he  was  baptized,  and  for 
years  he  has  been  an  active  deacon  of  that  church. 

Mr.  Challiss  often  referred  to  another  incident  con- 
nected with  his  pastorate  there,  and  with  which  he 
sometimes  comforted  a  brother  minister,  who  was  mor- 
tified over  some  poor  sermon  just  preached.  On  a 
certain  Lord's  Day  morning,  when  his  congregation 
was  unusually  good,  Mr.  Challiss  was  very  much  em- 
barrassed while  preaching,  and  when  he  came  out  of 
the  pulpit  felt  that  he  was  ashamed  to  see  any  one. 
About  a  year  after  this  he  received  a  letter  in  an  un- 
known hand.  It  was  from  a  young  man,  living  in  a 
distant  town,  who  said  that  on  a  certain  Lord's  Day 
he  was  at  Lower  Dublin,  and  was  walking  about  for 
pleasure  ;  but  by  some  means  he  was  inclined  to  enter 
the  house  of  God  and  heard  the  pastor  preach  a  ser- 
mon which  greatly  interested  him.  It  was  the  same 
sermon  preached  under  so  much  embarrassment  and 
was  blessed  of  God  to  this  young  man's  conversion ; 
he  wrote  to  express  his  indebtedness  for  that  sermon, 
and  to  say  how  grateful  he  was  that  he  was  permitted 


180  REV-  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

to  hear  it.  This  and  like  experience  led  Mr.  Challiss 
to  feel  less  anxiety  about  his  poor  sermons. 

He  was  accustomed  to  preach  three  times  each 
Lord's  Day,  and  generally  once  or  oftener  during  the 
week.  He  kept  up  four  out-stations  where  he 
preached  at  stated  times.  He  was  highly  esteemed  by 
the  people  throughout  his  field. 

Said  one :  "  I  was  a  young  man,  thoughtless  and 
fond  of  pleasure,  when  Mr.  Challiss  was  here.  But  I 
always  felt  a  strange  awe  and  fascination  in  reference 
to  him.  I  regarded  him  as  a  very  good  man,  and  felt 
his  conduct  was  so  truly  Christian  that  I  honored 
him.  His  preaching  often  deeply  impressed  me,  and  I 
found  it  hard  to  shake  off  the  uncomfortable  feelings 
which  it  awakened.  These  feelings  in  reference  to 
Mr.  Challiss  were  general  among  the  young  people  of 
this  entire  community."  Though  twenty-five  years 
had  passed,  and  this  gentleman  was  not  a  Christian, 
but  a  man  full  of  worldly  cares,  yet  he  had  not  forgot- 
ten his  early  impressions  received  from  the  life  and 
labors  of  this  faithful  man  of  God. 

Another  said  :  "  I  was  a  little  boy  when  Mr.  Chal- 
liss came  to  Lower  Dublin.  I  thought  he  was  a  very 
good  Christian.  I  held  him  in  very  high  esteem,  but 
felt  afraid  of  him, — not  because  he  was  austere  or  re- 
pulsive to  children ;  he  was  not,  but  very  kind  and 
affable,  and  especially  friendly  to  children.      He  was 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  Jgl 

often  at  my  father's  house.  We  lived  near  one  of  his 
out-stations,  where  he  preached  on  Sunday  afternoons, 
and  frequently  he  would  go  to  our  house  after  his 
morning  service  and  remain  till  the  time  for  his  after- 
noon service.  He  would  generally  take  me  in  his 
carriage.  I  liked  the  ride  very  much,  but  did  not 
like  the  second  sermon,  which  I  knew  would  come 
as  we  rode  home.  And  yet,  as  I  see  it  now,  he  never 
pressed  the  matter  too  far,  but  said  just  enough  to 
leave  me  with  a  troubled  conscience, — feeling  that  he 
had  done  his  duty,  but  that  I  was  not  doing  mine." 

There  are  many  still  living  at  Lower  Dublin  who 
remember  the  faithful  labors  and  Christian  life  of  this 
pastor  with  special  interest,  and  not  a  few  who  are 
thankful  to  God  for  his  earnest-hearted  efforts  to  lead 
them  to  Christ  and  train  them  for  future  glory. 

His  interest  in  this  old  church  continued  till  his 
death.  In  the  change  of  pastors  or  any  other  matter 
specially  affecting  the  interests  of  the  church,  these 
brethren  had  his  prayers ;  and,  when  desired,  his  coun- 
sel and  service.  He  frequently  visited  them  and  al- 
ways felt  it  a  privilege  to  mingle  again,  even  for  a  lit- 
tle time,  with  this  people,  among  whom  he  had  spent 
seven  years,  and  enjoyed  so  many  seasons  of  social 
pleasure  and  spiritual  profit.  These  visits  were 
prized   by  his  friends  there,  who  were  always  glad  to 


182  REV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

see  the  face  and  hear  the  familiar  voice  of  their  old 
pastor,  and  to  have  him  visit  in  their  families  again. 

He  visited  them  in  the  fall  of  1866,  and  spent  a 
Lord's  Day  with  them.  The  pastor  of  the  church  was 
feeling  anxious  and  discouraged  about  the  interests  of 
the  church.  He  expressed  his  feelings  and  anxieties 
to  his  brethren  in  the  presence  of  Mr.  Challiss.  The 
old  pastor  spoke  of  having  had  similar  feelings,  under 
like  circumstances,  while  serving  this  same  people 
many  years  before.  He  told  how  God  followed  their 
anxieties  and  prayers  with  a  very  gracious  revival, 
and  that  some  then  present  were  eye-witnesses  of  the 
work,  and  some  were  then  gathered  into  the  fold  of 
Christ.  With  much  tenderness  he  earnestly  exhorted 
the  brethren  to  rally  around  their  pastor,  have  faith  in 
God's  promises,  and  continue  in  prayer,  assuring  them 
that  the  good  time  would  come.  "  Thongh  it  tarry, 
wait  for  it,  because  it  will  surely  come,  it  will  not 
tarry."  Both  pastor  and  people  were  encouraged  by 
his  words,  and  not  long  after,  God  commenced  a 
gracious  work  in  their  midst,  and  more  than  fifty  were 
added  to  the  church  by  baptism. 


CHAPTER   X. 

THE     DOUBLE     PASTORATE. 

April,  184:0,— April,    1852. 

THE  Marlton  and  Moorestown  Baptist  churches  are 
l)oth  located  in  Burlington  County,  N.  J.,  within 
twelve  miles  of  Philadelphia,  and  about  six  miles 
apart. 

The  intervening  and  surrounding  country  is  re- 
markably adapted  for  agricultural  purposes,  possessing 
that  variety  of  soil  so  well  suited  to  furnish  the  diffe- 
rent vegetables  and  fruits  demanded  by  the  markets 
of  large  neighboring  cities.  New  Jersey  has  often 
been  called  "  The  kitchen  garden  of  Philadelphia  and 
New  York."  The  appellation,  though  evidently 
designed  as  a  reproach,  is  after  all  no  meager  compli- 
ment. Those  cities  are  greatly  dependent  upon  this 
state,  for  the  luxuries,  comforts,  and  necessities  of  life, 
and  no  mean  soil  or  unskilful  culture  could  satisfy 
the  voracious  demands  of  their  teeming  thousands. 
While  there  is  no  state  in  the  Union  whose  lands  are 
valued  so  high  per  acre,  or  oifer  greater  variety  of 
16  183 


184  J^EV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

production  to  the  agriculturist  or  pay  him  better 
for  his  labor,  yet  there  is  probably  no  state  in  refer- 
ence to  which  general  opinion  is  more  at  fault  on  these 
points.  Unfortunately  for  the  agricultural  reputation 
of  the  state,  the  early  general  route  of  travel,  which 
ran  across  the  state  between  the  two  great  cities  of  the 
Union,  and  also  the  routes  from  these  to  the  justly 
celebrated  Jersey  watering  places,  passed  through  some 
of  the  poorest  and  least  improved  sections  of  the  state. 
Many  persons  have  thus  formed  an  unfavorable  opin- 
ion of  the  entire  state,  and  have  not  corrected  the  false 
impressions  of  this  limited  view,  by  a  more  extended 
acquaintance  with  its  agricultural  resources,  and  by  a 
knowledge  of  the  fact  that  the  proximity  of  the  state 
to  great  markets  is  rapidly  converting  even  its  seem- 
ing worthless  sections  into  fruitful  fields,  yielding  the 
choicest  productions,  and  amply  repaying  the  labor  of 
their  culture.  An  enthusiastic  Jerseyman  has  claimed 
his  state  as,  "  The  garden  of  North  America."  To 
those  who  know  of  the  abundance,  variety,  and  qual- 
ity of  vegetables,  fruits,  and  flowers  there  produced, 
the  claim  is  not  a  mere  figure  of  speech. 

Burlington  County  is  a  fair  sample  of  West  Jersey, 
both  in  the  variety  of  its  soil  and  in  the  advancement 
of  its  agricultural  interests.  While  much  of  the  east- 
ern part  of  the  county  is  uninviting  and  still  remains 
undeveloped,  the    western  }>art    has   been    for   many 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  185 

years,  in  a  high  state  of  cultivation,  abounding  in 
truck  and  grain  farms,  with  good  improvements  for 
all  farming  purposes,  and  domestic  comfort  and  enjoy- 
ment ;  many  of  them  are  the  homes  of  refinement  and 
affluence.  This  county  was  early  occupied  in  the  set- 
tlement of  the  country,  and  for  some  years  before 
Philadelphia  was  laid  out  or  even  occupied,  it  was  a 
favorite  resort  of  the  first  Quaker  emigrants,  who  con- 
stituted a  large  portion  of  its  early  settlers,  and  who 
long  maintained  a  commanding  position  in  the  reli- 
gious, social,  and  political  affairs  of  this  county.  The 
members  of  this  denomination  are  still  numerous  in 
the  county,  owning  a  large  amount  of  the  real  estate, 
and  have  maintained  considerable  social  influence. 
But  their  numbers  and  religious  influence  have 
become  relatively  less  with  the  increase  of  population 
and  more  active  labors  of  other  religious  denomina- 
tions. While  for  a  time  they  probably  out-numbered 
all  other  denominations  combined,  now  at  least  two 
others  out-number  them,  and  their  political  prestige  in 
the  county  has  been  gradually  lost. 

The  vicinity  of  Marl  ton  and  Moorestown  was  gen- 
erally occupied  by  them,  and  there  they  have  retained 
much  of  their  former  prestige.  In  1845,  their  influ- 
ence in  this  part  of  the  county  was  still  very  great, 
and  the  popular  mind  was  much  under  their  control. 

Among  the  early  settlers  in  the  county  there  were  a 


186  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

few  Baptists,  and  it  is  probable  that  as  early  as  1685 
there  was  occasional  preaching  in  the  county  by  Elder 
Thomas  Dungan,  a  Baptist  minister,  wlio  organized  a 
church  in  1 684  west  of  the  Delaware,  at  a  place  called 
Cold  Spring,  in  Bucks  County,  Pennsylvania.  It  is 
certainly  known  that  the  Rev.  Elias  Keach,  pastor  of 
the  old  Pennepeck,  or  Lower  Dublin  Baptist  Church 
visited  the  county  in  1688,  and  frequently  preached  at 
Burlington  and  other  points.  Indeed,  there  is  a  tra- 
dition that  he  organized  a  church  near  the  town  of 
Burlington,  in  1690.  But  this  is  not  sufficiently  au- 
thenticated, and  probably  grew  out  of  the  fact,  that 
the  ordinances  of  Baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper  were 
administered  at  or  near  Burlington.  Those  baptized 
here  were  members  of  the  Lower  Dublin  Church,  but 
to  accommodate  the  members  living  at  a  distance  the 
church  observed  the  Lord's  Supper  at  some  of  the 
prominent  out-stations.  This  custom  continued  at 
Burlington  for  several  years,  and  for  many  years  the 
town  of  Burlington  was  an  out-station,  regularly  sup- 
plied with  preaching  by  the  pastor  of  the  Lower  Dub- 
lin Church,  and  the  county  was  missionary  ground  for 
more  than  fifty  years.  The  pastors  and  brethren  of 
the  Lower  Dublin,  Middletown,  Cohansey,  and  Cape 
May  churches  frequently  made  missionary  tours 
through  the  county,  and  several  places  were  supplied 
with  occasional  preaching. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  ]87 

In  1764,  the  oldest  Baptist  Cliurch  in  the  county 
was  organized  at  Spring  Mills,  now  Pemberton,  in  the 
western  central  part  of  the  county. 

In  1785,  another  church  was  constituted  at  Jacobs- 
town,  in  the  northern  part  of  the  county.  Sixteen 
years  later,  1801,  and  the  churches  at  Burlington  and 
Mount  Holly  were  duly  constituted.  The  Evesham, 
now  Marl  ton  Church,  was  constituted  in  1805;  the 
churches  at  Bordentown  in  1821;  at  Vincentown  in 
1834;  and  the  Moorestown  Church  in  1837.  In  1845, 
there  were  ten  Baptist  churches  in  the  county,  with  a 
membership  of  1553.  Since  then  three  more  churches 
have  been  constituted,  making  thirteen  Baptist  churches 
in  the  county  at  present,  with  two  thousand  and  five 
hundred  members. 

Mr.  Challiss  entered  upon  this  field  in  April,  1845, 
and  commenced  his  "Double  Pastorate,"  assuming  the 
pastoral  charge  of  the  Marlton  and  Moorestown 
churches.  Most  of  the  members  of  these  churches  were 
farmers,  and  scattered  through  the  surrounding  country, 
but  both  meeting-houses  were  located  in  villages,  in  the 
midst  of  a  very  thickly  settled  country,  with  five  or 
six  smaller  villages  embraced  in  their  fields  of  labor. 

The  Quakers,  or  Friends,  had,  from  the  first  settle- 
ment of  the  county,  held  the  commanding  position  in 
this  section,  and  they  were  still  the  principal  land 
holders,  and  by  far  the  wealthier  class  of  the  commu- 


188  REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS. 

nity.  Their  position  placed  the  popular  mind  much 
under  their  moulding  influence,  and  many,  outside  of 
their  own  society,  conformed  to  the  language  and  style 
of  dress  peculiar  to  this  people.  It  is  true  that  many 
of  their  young  people,  all  of  whom  were  members  of 
the  society  by  "birth-right,"  were  greatly  departing 
from  that  simplicity  of  dress  and  language  so  earnestly 
demanded  by  the  founder  and  early  members  of  the 
sect.  In  these  departures  from  the  teachings  of  the 
fathers,  they  had  tended  more  to  excessive  worldliness 
and  to  some  phases  of  infidelity,  than  to  religious  life 
under  any  other  form  of  profession.  Their  wealth  and 
social  position  gave  them  influence  in  the  community, 
and  they  had  "a  name  to  live,"  being  nominally  mem- 
bers of  a  religious  society,  but  possessed  neither  the 
power  nor  form  of  godliness.  There  were  many  mem- 
bers of  the  society  who  were  true  and  faithful  to  their 
principles,  and  were  grieved  on  account  of  these  de- 
partures; but  most  of  these  were  decided  in  their  reli- 
gious preferences  and  prejudices,  and  exclusive  in  their 
social  intercourse.  They  had  but  little  sympathy  with 
the  efforts  of  Christians  of  other  names  to  extend  reli- 
gious truths,  and  but  little  aggressive  force  among 
themselves.  Their  efforts  in  behalf  of  religious  in- 
struction were  mainly  confined  to  their  own  society 
and  families.  Thus  religion  was  at  a  disadvantage; 
and  the  public  mind,  which  does  not  sufficiently  dis- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CNALLISS.  189 

criminate  between  true  and  false  professors  of  any 
name,  nor  sufficiently  improve  the  religious  opportu- 
nities which  are  proffered,  was  morbid  or  exceedingly 
indifferent  on  this  subject.  Faithful  work,  long  con- 
tinued and  earnest,  was  necessary  to  counteract  the 
morbid  feeling  and  indifference  on  the  subject  of  reli- 
gion, and  the  latent  infidelity  which  existed  through 
this  section.  This  state  of  things  made  this  field  of 
labor  peculiar,  and  exceedingly  difficult.  Mr.  Challiss 
entered  upon  his  work  here  understanding  these  diffi- 
culties, but  strong  in  faith,  knowing  the  power  of 
divine  truth  to  overcome  and  conquer  all  things  at  last. 
The  Marlton  Baptist  Church  was  constituted  in 
1805,  and  for  many  years  was  known  as  the  Evesham 
Church,  named  after  the  township  in  which  it  was  lo- 
cated. Their  second  house  of  worship,  built  in  1839, 
was  located  in  the  village  of  Marlton,  and  in  1845  the 
name  of  the  church  was  changed  to  correspond  with 
the  location  of  the  new  house.  There  was  nothing  of 
special  note  in  the  history  of  this  church  to  give  it 
prestige  in  the  community  or  awaken  the  enthusiasm 
of  a  new  laborer  in  the  field.  Overshadowed  by  others 
of  wealth  and  social  position,  and  ever  encountering 
the  difficulties  already  noticed,  these  brethren  had 
quietly  plodded  along,  with  a  good  degree  of  success 
and  a  gradual  increase  of  members  and  influence,  and 
had  evinced  some  aggressive  force.     At  the  Associa- 


190  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

tion  in  1844,  they  reported  one  hundred  and  fifty-five 
members  and  seventy-five  scholars  in  their  Sunday- 
school.  Most  of  the  time  they  had  enjoyed  pastoral 
labors,  either  alone  or  conjointly  with  some  neighbor- 
ing church.  They  had  been  greatly  afflicted  in  the 
loss  of  their  former  pastor,  Rev.  A.  M.  Tyler,  who  was 
ordained  in  May,  1844,  and  died  in  July  following,  af- 
ter a  pastorate  of  only  two  months.  After  the  death 
of  this  pastor,  they  were  dependent  upon  supplies  till 
the  following  April,  when  INIr.  Challiss  commenced  his 
labors  with  them. 

In  December,  1844,  in  connection  with  the  Moores- 
town  Church,  they  extended  a  unanimous  and  cordial 
invitation  to  Mr,  Challiss  to  become  their  pastor.  He 
responded  favorably,  and  agreed  "  to  become  the  joint 
pastor  of  the  said  churches,  to  discharge  all  the  duties 
a  minister  ought  to  perform  in  the  pastoral  office,  di- 
viding his  time  and  labors  among  them  as  duty  seemed 
to  direct."  Now  these  brethren  were  anxious  for  the 
coming  of  their  pastor  elect,  and  were  prepared  to  give 
him  a  cordial  greeting,  and  to  enjoy  his  pastoral  care, 
and  attend  his  ministrations  of  truth  with  profit  and 
pleasure. 

In  their  letter  to  the  Association,  September,  1845, 
they  thus  refer  to  his  settlement  with  them. 

"  We  have  been  favored  in  obtaining  the  services  of 
our. Brother  J.  M.  Challiss,  who  regularly  and  faithfully 


REV.  JAMES  31.    C'HALLISS.  191 

ministers  to  us  the  word  of  truth.  He  acts  as  joint 
pastor  of  the  Moorestown  and  Marlton  Churches. 
Our  congregations  are  large  and  attentive,  and  a  num- 
ber are  inquiring  'what  they  must  do  to  be  saved.' 
A  few  have  decided  to  follow  the  Lord  in  his  ordi- 
nances, and  we  are  encouraged  to  look  for  better 
days." 

The  Moorestown  Baptist  Church  was  well  located 
in  Moorestown,  a  pleasant  rural  village  of  considerable 
enterprise.  This  was  comparatively  a  young  church, 
constituted  in  1837,  with  thirty-three  members. 
During  the  next  year,  they  erected  a  meeting-house, 
and,  considering  the  difficulties  of  the  field,  they  had 
enjoyed  more  than  usual  prosperity.  In  1845  the 
church  had  128  members  and  a  Sunday-school  of  120 
scholars.  The  Rev.  J.  M.  Courteney  had  served  them 
as  pastor  the  first  five  years  of  their  history  with  great 
acceptance  and  good  success.  Like  the  Marlton 
Church  they  had  been  afflicted  in  the  loss  of  their  pas- 
tor, Rev.  E.  Sexton,  who  after  a  short  pastorate  with 
them,  had  been  permanently  laid  aside  by  ill  health. 
Rev.  A.  J.  Hires  supplied  their  pulpit  for  some 
months,  and  up  to  the  time  Mr.  Challiss  entered  upon 
his  pastorate  with  them.  They  heartily  joined  the 
Marlton  Church  in  calling  Mr.  Challiss  to  the  joint 
pastorate  of  the  two  churches,  and  gladly  welcomed 
him  to  his  labors  amono;  them.     In  their  letter  to  the 


192  liEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Association,  September,  1845,  they  thus  allude  to  the 
coming  of  their  new  pastor :  "  Agreeably  to  previous 
engagement.  Brother  J.  M.  Challiss  entered  upon  the 
pastoral  charge  of  this  church,  on  April  1st,  in  con- 
nection with  the  Marl  ton  Church.  We  have  enjoyed 
some  few  mercy  drops,  which  we  hope  may  be  but  the 
prelude  of  a  more  copious  shower." 

Mr.  Challiss  makes  the  following  reference  to  his 
call  to  this  field  of  labor,  and  the  duties  to  be  per- 
formed there. 

"After  laboring  nearly  seven  years  with  the  church 
of  Lower  Dublin,  I  became  convinced,  from  various 
causes,  that  my  usefulness  there  was  principally  at  an 
end,  and  I  signified  my  purpose  to  resign  and  leave 
that  field  at  the  close  of  that  pastoral  year.  This 
being  understood,  I  very  soon  received  a  unanimous 
call  from  the  Marlton  and  Moorestown  Baptist 
churches,  New  Jersey,  to  become  their  joint  pastor. 
After  mature  deliberation  I  accepted  their  call,  and 
entered  upon  my  duties  there  in  April,  1845,  and 
removed  my  family  to  the  village  of  Marlton,  and 
lived  in  a  house  always  used  as  a  parsonage,  belonging 
to  Deacon  Charles  Kain,  of  precious  memory,  and 
adjoining  his  residence.  I  found  both  these  churches 
in  debt  for  their  places  of  worship,  and  much  discour- 
aged, each  having  tried  to  sustain  a  pastor,  but  failed 
to  continue  this  arrangement  because  of  their  limited 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  193 

resources.  Being  blessed  with  a  good  constitution,  I 
engaged  to  perform  the  work  of  two  men,  preaching 
for  both  the  churches  every  Sunday,  in  the  morning  at 
Marlton,  and  in  the  afternoon  and  evening  at  Moores- 
town.  This  labor,  besides  the  many  other  pastoral 
duties  in  both  churches,  was  an  arduous  undertaking, 
but  with  the  blessing  of  God  I  was  sustained  in  it 
with  uninterrupted  health." 

In  agreeing  upon  the  time  and  order  of  public  ser- 
vices at  the  two  places,  the  churches  had  respect,  as 
far  as  they  could,  to  the  convenience  and  comfort  of 
their  pastor. 

His  Loid's  Day  services  commenced  at  Marlton, 
the  place  of  his  residence,  where  he  preached  in  the 
morning ;  then  a  drive  of  six  miles  took  him  to 
Moorestown,  where  he  preached  both  afternoon  and 
evening.  By  this  arrangement  of  services  he  was 
obliged  to  travel  the  distance  between  his  two  fields 
but  once  on  the  Lord's  Day.  He  generally  remained 
at  Moorestown  till  Monday,  and  usually  spent  the 
day,  and  frequently  Tuesday,  in  visiting  the  people 
there,  and  attending  to  other  pastoral  duties  and  look- 
ing after  the  general  interests  of  the  church  as  far  as 
this  limited  time  would  permit.  Occasionally  he  w^as 
with  these  brethren  at  their  prayer  meetings  during 
the  week,  either  remaining  with  them  till  that  time,  or 
returning   for   that   purpose.     The  remainder  of  the 


194  RE^^-  ^4.1/^.9  M.   CHALLISS. 

week  was  given  to  pastoral  duties  in  the  Marlton  field 
and  preparation  for  the  services  of  the  next  Lord's 
Day. 

Thus,  week  after  week,  for  seven  years,  he  continued 
to  labor  as  the  joint  pastor  of  these  churches.  He 
often  felt  the  disadvantage  of  this  divided  pastoral 
work,  but  as  this  arrangement  seemed  to  be  the  very 
best  that  could  be  made  by  these  churches  at  that 
time,  he  cheerfully  accepted  the  labor,  and  earnestly 
and  faithfully  sought  to  do  all  the  duties  of  this 
double  pastorate.  He  entered  this  field  fully  con- 
scious of  the  onerous  labors  which  he  must  perform, 
and  that  those  labors  must  be  scattered  and  would 
probably  fail  in  producing  commensurate  results,  for 
want  of  unity  or  concentration.  But  duty  was  his  and 
the  results  were  with  his  Master.  He  endeavored  to 
do  his  duty  and  leave  the  results  with  the  Lord. 

With  his  usual  zeal  and  energy  he  commenced  his 
work,  believing  that  his  labors  and  the  labors  of  the 
brethren  in  these  churches  would  be  owned  and 
blessed  of  God,  and  that  sooner  or  later  some  good 
results  would  be  manifest.  It  was  not  long  before  he 
was  permitted  to  rejoice,  with  the  brethren  of  both 
these  churches,  over  a  gracious  work  of  grace  among 
them.  With  a  grateful  heart  he  made  this  record. 
"  It  was  soon  made  evident  that  the  Lord  had  come 
back  with  me  to  Jersey,  and  was  blessing  my  labors 


R  E  V.  J  A  MES  31.   CHA  L  L  TSS  1  9  5 

ill  the  conversion  of  souls  and  the  upbuilding  of  these 
churches.  Soon  the  brethren  here  were  encouraged 
and  united  in  prayer,  looking  for  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  in  their  midst,  nor  did  they  look  in  vain." 

Under  the  date  of  January  16,  1846,  he  wrote, 
"  Since  April  last  I  have  been  laboring  as  pastor  of 
the  Marlton  and  Moorestown  churches.  Both  the 
churches  have  been  much  depressed  in  spirit  and 
afflicted  in  the  loss  of  their  former  pastors,  who,  after 
short  pastorates,  had  been  removed,  one  by  death  and 
the  other  by  ill-health.  These  heavy  afflictions, 
together  with  a  general  declension  in  religion  left  the 
church  in  a  very  low  condition.  But,  for  two  or  three 
months  past,  light  has  been  breaking  in  upon  our 
prospects.  God  has  heard  and  answered  prayer. 
At  Marlton  we  have  had  valuable  accessions  by  bap- 
tism for  three  months  in  succession.  At  Moorestown 
a  special  refreshing  has  been  experienced  in  answer  to 
prayer.  Last  Saturday  was  our  quarterly  meeting, 
when  eight  rejoicing  converts,  all  in  the  prime  of  life, 
told  us  what  great  things  God  had  done  for  them,  and 
on  Sunday  morning,  in  the  presence  of  a  large 
assembly,  I  had  the  pleasure  of  planting  them  together 
in  the  likeness  of  the  Saviour's  death. 

"The  first  appearance  of  good  at  Marlton  was  pre- 
ceded by  a  firm  resolution  on  the  ])art  of  the  church  to 
enforce  a  righteous  disoipline,  and  thus  free  themselves 
17 


19G  JiEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

from  mere  cumberers  of  the  ground.  At  Moorestown 
the  cloud  began  to  break  when  they  resolved  to 
remove  a  grievous  obstacle  in  the  way  of  their  pros- 
jierity,  which  was  a  heavy  debt  on  their  place  of  wor- 
ship. During  this  refreshing  season  we  have  had  no 
heated  excitement.  The  only  means  used  were  prayer 
and  the  regular  ministry  of  the  word." 

During  the  next  year  there  was  no  special  interest 
at  Moorestown,  but  a  very  gracious  work  was  enjoyed 
at  Marl  ton.  In  reference  to  this  season  of  refreshing 
Mr.  Challiss  wrote,  January,  1847,  "  In  unison  with 
many  branches  of  our  Zion,  we  met  for  thanksgiving, 
on  the  day  so  generally  observed.  Soon  it  was  made 
evident  that,  while  we  had  great  reason  to  thank  God 
for  his  goodness,  we  had  also  abundant  cause  for  Sf.lf- 
abasement  and  humiliation  before  God.  From  that 
day  we  commenced  a  season  of  prayer  which  continued 
nearly  a  week.  The  members  of  the  church  solemnly 
renewed  their  covenant  with  God,  and  had  the  joys  of 
their  salvation  restored.  The  next  week  we  secured 
the  assistance  of  some  neighboring  pastors.  Our  place 
of  prayer  has  been  open  every  evening  for  more  than 
five  weeks.  The  meetings  have  been  peculiarly  dis- 
tinguished for  their  perfect  order  and  the  solemn 
attention  given  to  the  word  of  God.  The  word  of 
truth  was  faithfully  preached,  and  was  accompanied 
Avith  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost.     The  work  of  con- 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  197 

viction  soon  commenced,  and  the  greater  work  of  con- 
version followed.  Sixteen  have  given  a  reason  for  the 
hope  that  is  within  them,  fourteen  of  whom  have  been 
baptized,  ten  men  and  four  women.  Most  of  them  are 
young  men,  and  just  rising  into  life,  of  whom  we  hope 
much  for  the  cause  of  Christ.  Neighboring  pastors 
have  rendered  us  timely  assistance  in  this  delightful 
meeting,  to  whom  we  are  greatly  indebted  for  their 
labors  of  love.  To  God,  however,  be  all  the  glory. 
While  these  brethren,  in  the  sense  of  the  apostle,  were 
nothing,  it  was  God  that  gave  this  increase.  Oh  ! 
that  men  would  praise  the  Lord  for  his  goodness." 

The  following  year  another  revival  was  enjoyed  by 
the  Moorestown  Church,  while  there  was  but  little  of 
revival  interest  at  Marlton  during  that  year.  Early 
in  March,  1848,  Mr.  Challiss  wrote  in  reference  to 
this  work,  "The  state  of  things  at  Moorestown  is  en- 
couraging. For  some  years  past  this  church  has  been 
engaged  more  in  setting  in  order  her  temporal  and 
spiritual  affairs,  by  maintaining  a  wholesome  discipline 
and  bringing  her  membership  into  active  duty,  than 
in  adding  to  her  numbers.  But  the  way  of  the  Lord 
being  prepared,  he  came  unexpectedly  and  unde- 
servedly. Additional  meetings  were  held,  and  occa- 
sional assistance  rendered  by  neighboring  pastors. 
But  frequently  the  church  was  left  to  work  alone,  not 
even  their  own  pastor  with  them.     The  work  went  on 


198  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS 

without  noise  or  confusion ;  soon  a  goodly  number 
began  to  inquire,  '  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved  ?'  and 
being  directed  to  Jesus,  they  professed  faith  in  his  pre- 
cious blood.  Yesterday  I  had  the  pleasure  of  bap- 
tizing twenty  willing  converts,  eleven  of  whom  were 
men.  The  good  work  is  still  advancing,  and  new 
cases  of  deep  anxiety  are  almost  daily  coming  to  our 
knowledge.  May  this  prove  a  lasting  blessing  to  our 
Zion.     To  God  be  all  the  glory." 

Again,  in  1850,  both  churches  enjoyed  a  pleasant 
revival  season;  the  Moorestown  Church  received 
seventeen  by  ba})tisni;  and  the  Marlton  Church,  ten. 

These  were  the  gracious  harvest  seasons  of  this  pas- 
torate, but  every  year  witnessed  the  ingathering  of 
some  gleanings  from  this  double  field  of  labor,  while 
the  faithful  sowing  was  continued,  and  the  culture  of 
the  whole  field  was  carefully  regarded  in  all  seasons. 
During  this  pastorate,  he  baptized  James  E.  Wilson  at 
Marlton,  and  Robert  G.  Farley  and  A.  H.  Folwell  at 
Moorestown,  all  of  whom  were  subsequently  licensed 
to  preach  and  ordained  to  the  ministry. 

Mr.  Challiss  had  felt  all  along  the  disadvantage  of 
his  divided  work,  both  to  these  churches  and  to  him- 
self. He  waited  and  labored  anxiously  for  the  time 
when  they  should  be  able  to  make  arrangements, 
better  for  their  own  prosperity  and  the  efficient  work- 
ing of  their  pastors  in  their  respective  communities. 


REV.  JAMES  M.  nHALlJSS.  199 

This  time,  in  his  judgment,  finally  came,  and  he 
resolved  to  resign  and  leave  the  field,  that  each  church 
might  select  a  new  pastor  for  itself  alone.  He  says, 
"  I  continued  to  labor  with  these  churches,  through 
many  joys  and  sorrows,  sometimes  cast  down,  but  not 
destroyed,  and  then  again  greatly  cheered  in  my  work. 
While  in  this  field  of  usefulness,  I  baptized,  on  pro- 
fession of  faith,  ninety-four  willing  converts  of  Jesus. 
During  the  seven  years  of  faithful  toil  I  spent  with 
them,  I  had  the  pleasure  to  see  them  so  strengthened, 
that  upon  my  resignation  they  each  at  once  engaged  a 
pastor  for  themselves  and  are  continuing  to  grow,  and 
have  both  become  efficient  churches  of  Jesus  Christ. 
After  serving  them  as  long  as  Jacob  engaged  to  serve 
for  Rachel,  I  was  convinced  that  they  ought  to  have 
two  men  in  the  field.  I  therefore  resigned,  and 
accepted  a  unanimous  call  from  the  First  Cohansey 
Church,  at  Roadstown,  Cumberland  County, 

He  left  this  field  on  the  first  of  April,  1852,  and 
was  succeeded  by  Rev.  C.  E.  Wilson  in  the  pastorate 
at  Marlton,  and  by  Rev.  E.  D.  Fendall  in  the  pastor- 
ate at  Moorestown.  Both  these  brethren  were  from 
Cumberland  County ;  the  former  pastor  of  the  Second 
Cohansey  Church  at  Bridgeton,  and  the  latter  a  for- 
mer pastor  of  the  First  Cohansey  Church,  at  Roads- 
town.  Mr.  Challiss  occasionally  joked  these  brethren 
in  reference  to  this  change,  playfully  repeating  the  re- 

17* 


200  REV   JAMES  M.   CHALIASS. 

mark  of  some  one,  that  "  it  took  two  Cumberland 
County  ministers  to  supply  the  place  of  one  Burling- 
ton County  minister." 

Honorable  testimony  to  his  fidelity  and  usefulness, 
in  this  double  pastorate,  was  borne  by  both  these 
churches  in  their  letters  to  the  following  Association, 
and  also  by  his  successors  on  this  field.  "It  was  my 
privilege/'  says  one  of  these,  "to  succeed  Brother  Chal- 
liss  as  pastor  of  the  Moorestown  Church,  upon  his  re- 
tirement to  enter  upon  the  pastorate  at  Cohansey.  For 
seven  years  he  had  served  the  Marl  ton  and  Moores- 
town Churches  jointly.  He  resided  in  Marlton,  and 
preached  there  on  Lord's  Day  mornings,  and  Moores- 
town in  the  afternoon  and  evenings,  having  to  de- 
liver three  sermons  every  Sunday.  This  was  proba- 
bly the  best  arrangement  which  could  have  been  made 
at  the  time,  and  he  accomplished  as  much  in  his  divi- 
ded labors  as  perhaps  any  man  could  accomplish  in 
like  circumstances.  But  such  an  arrangement  is  not 
favorable  to  the  growth  and  development  of  the 
churches.  Spending  but  a  small  portion  of  his  time 
in  Moorestown,  seldom  with  them  in  their  social  meet- 
ings, and  being  able  to  perform  but  to  a  limited  extent 
pastoral  duties,  his  power  was  not  felt  throughout  the 
community  as  it  would  have  been  otherwise.  He  was 
cora])aratively  a  stranger  to  all  except  the  immediate 
congregation  who  heard  him  preach.     The  structure 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  201 

of  society  in  Burlington  County,  and  especially  around 
the  villages  where  he  labored,  is  somewhat  peculiar, 
and  Brother  Challiss  could  not  so  readily  adapt  him- 
self thereto  as  some  others,  and  did  not,  therefore,  la- 
bor with  so  much  facility  as  in  other  fields — although, 
as  the  records  show,  he  was  greatly  blessed  in  his  work. 
Under  his  ministry  the  church  at  Moorestown  increased 
in  numbers  and  became  settled  and  established." 

In  both  these  churches  there  are  still  many  mem- 
bers who  shared  the  pastoral  care  of  Mr.  Challiss 
and  sat  regularly  under  his  ministry  for  years;  a 
number  of  whom  were  brought  into  the  churches 
through  his  labors.  The  remembrance  of  him  is  full 
of  respect  and  tenderness.  His  constant  anxiety  for 
their  spiritual  good,  and  his  sympathy  and  kindness  in 
their  trials  and  sorrows,  won  their  hearts,  and  his  fidel- 
ity as  a  pastor  and  preacher  commanded  their  respect. 

They  followed  him  with  their  prayers  as  he  went  to 
his  new  field  of  labor.  They  always  welcomed  him 
among  them  on  his  frequent  visits  to  this  former  field 
of  labor,  and  were  glad  to  hear  his  voice  again  pro- 
claiming to  them  those  precious  truths  in  which  his 
soul  so  much  rejoiced.  They  still  speak  of  his  virtues 
and  worth,  and  cherish  his  memory  as  a  servant  of 
Christ,  faithful  to  his  own  soul,  faithful  to  the  souls 
committed  to  his  watch-care,  and  faithful  in  all  the 
duties  of  the  Christian  ministry. 


w 


CHAPTER    XL 

LAST    PASTORATE. 

April,  lS52--Apra,  1860. 

rPHE  last  field  of  labor  which  Mr.  Challiss  occupied 
-'■  as  a  pastor  was  a  rural  district  in  Cumberland 
County,  West  New  Jersey,  having  its  centre  at  Roads- 
town,  a  little  village  where  the  meeting-house  was 
located,  about  midway  between  Bridgeton  and  the 
Delaware  Bay. 

This  was  the  field  occupied  by  the  old  Cohansey 
Baptist  Church,  once  the  sole  occupant,  as  a  Baptist 
church,  of  all  West  Jersey,  with  missionary  grounds 
bounded  on  the  east  by  the  Atlantic  Ocean,  and  by 
the  Delaware  Bay  and  River  on  the  south  and  west, 
and  reaching  toward  the  north  until  they  were  met 
by  the  fields  occupied  by  the  old  churches  at  Middle- 
town  and  Piscataway. 

This  field,  which  had  stretched  out  so  many  miles, 
embracing  several  counties,  had  been  gradually  less- 
ened by  the  planting  of  other  churches,  till  it  was  re- 
duced to  a  territory  not  larger  than  a  single  township, 
202 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  203 

and  was  met  on  all  sides,  within  four  miles  of  its  cen- 
tre by  the  fields  occupied  by  other  Baptist  churches. 
The  old  mother  church,  though  sometimes  a  little  anx- 
ious lest  her  enterprising  daughters  should  absorb  all 
her  territory,  rejoiced  in  the  prosperity  which  had  at- 
tended her  labors,  and  in  the  growth  of  these  neigh- 
boring churches.  This  old  church  was  now  encircled 
by  six  churches,  whose  fields  were  pressing  hard  from 
all  points  upon  her  own,  while  more  than  a  score  of 
other  churches  were  formed  upon  the  general  field 
once  occupied  by  her  alone. 

As  a  mother  in  the  midst  of  her  grown-up  daugh- 
ters, and  grand-daughters,  she  continued  her  work, 
clothed  with  matronly  grace  and  dignity,  but  ever  re- 
newing the  vigor  of  her  youth  and  rejoicing  in  the  ful- 
filling of  the  promise — "  A  little  one  shall  become  a 
thousand,  and  a  small  one  a  strong  nation." 

From  a  "  Historical  Sketch"  of  this  church,  pre- 
pared by  the  pastor.  Rev.  T.  G.  Wright,  and  published 
in  1868,  we  gather  some  facts  concerning  the  field 
where  Mr.  Challiss  held  his  last  pastorate. 

"■  The  First  Cohansey  Baptist  Church  derives  its 
name  from  neither  township  nor  village,  but  from  the 
country  in  which  it  is  located.  It  is  a  rolling  tract  of 
land,  of  varied  soil,  adapted  to  all  kinds  of  agricultur- 
al products,  and  lying  on  both  sides  of  Cohansey 
Creek,  which  empties  into  the  Delaware  near  where  it 


204  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS 

spreads  itself  out  into  a  bay.  The  Cohansey  is  the 
principal  stream  of  the  region,  and,  being  navigable 
for  twenty  miles  from  its  mouth,  very  naturally  in- 
vited an  early  settlement  on  its  banks.  Here  on  this 
stream  the  Cohansic  Indian  once  paddled  his  canoe, 
while  the  adjacent  forests,  which  have  long  since  dis- 
appeared beneath  the  stroke  of  the  woodman's  axe, 
were  his  favorite  hunting  grounds.  At  the  head  of 
navigation,  on  the  Cohansey,  and  in  the  very  heart  of 
the  country,  lies  the  thriving  city  of  Bridgeton,  a  few 
miles  below  which  the  first  house  of  worship  was 
erected. 

"The  germ  of  this  church  came  from  the  Emerald 
Isle.  A  few  members  of  Cloughketin  Church,  county 
of  Tipperary,  Ireland-a  body  still  in  existence  in  1838 
— settled  on  Cohansey  Creek  as  early  as  the  year  1683. 

"  Not  long  after  the  settlement  of  these  Irish  Baptists, 
i.  e.,  in  1685,  Obadiah  Holmes  and  John  Cornelius 
removed  thither  from  the  colony  of  Rhode  Island. 
This  Holmes  was  a  son  of  Rev.  Obadiah  Holmes,  who 
in  1651  was  publicly  whipped  in  the  town,  now  city, 
of  Boston,  Massachusetts,  for  his  adherence  to  the 
principles  and  practices  of  the  Baptists.  He  proved  a 
valuable  accession  to  the  little  colony,  exerting  an  ex- 
cellent influence  every  way.  Not  only  was  he  made 
Judge  of  the  Court  of  Common  Pleas  for  Salem 
County,  but  he  stood  forth  as  the  first  Baptist  preacher 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CH ALL  IBS,.  205 

of"  whom  we  have  any  account  in  this  region  ;  and, 
though  never  ordained,  he  continued  to  hold  forth  the 
word  of  life  from  time  to  time  until  summoned  away 
by  death. 

''The  first  recorded  baptism  took  place  in  1688.  It 
was  administered  by  Rev.  Elias  Keach,  of  Pennepeck, 
Penn.,  to  three  individuals  ;  but  whether  they  were 
converted  through  his  preaching  or  that  of  Mr. 
Holmes,  we  have  no  means  to  determine.  The  prob- 
ability is  in  favor  of  the  latter  supposition,  and  that 
Rev.  Mr.  Keach  was  sent  for,  specially  to  administer 
the  ordinance,  owing  to  the  want  of  authority  on  the 
part  of  Mr.  Holmes. 

"About  a  year  subsequent  to  this  event.  Rev. 
Thomas  Killingworth  came  to  the  Cohansey  country 
from  Piscataway,  N.  J.,  where,  as  well  as  at  Middle- 
town,  N.  J.,  he  had  preached,  and  contributed  more 
or  less  to  the  organization  of  those  ancient  churches. 
This  increased  the  number  of  Baptists  in  the  region  to 
nine  males,  who,  with  probably  as  many  females,  were 
constituted  a  regular  Baptist  church  in  the  spring  of 
1690. 

"This  church  was  the  third  Baptist  church  formed  in 
the  state  of  New  Jersey,  and  the  thirteenth  in  the 
United  States,  and  was  one  of  the  first  churches  which 
formed  the  old  Philadelphia  Association  in  1707,  the 
oldest  Baptist  Association  in  America,  of  which  body 


206  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

it  remained  a  member  for  more  than  one  hundred 
years.  It  also  exercised  a  leading  influence  in  the  for- 
mation of  the  oldest  Association  in  New  Jersey,  in 
1811,  and  was  represented  by  her  pastor  in  the  meet- 
ing which  organized  the  Baptist  Triennial  Convention 
in  1814. 

"  An  aggressive  and  missionary  spirit  has  character- 
ized this  church  from  the  first.  Though  specially  lo- 
cated, in  the  Cohansey  country,  she  embraced  in  her 
field  the  whole  of  Jersey,  south  of  Camden.  Colo- 
ny after  colony  has  gone  forth  with  the  appro- 
bation of  the  mother  church,  until  her  patrimony 
has  been  so  divided  up  and  liberally  dispensed  that 
she  has  scarcely  enough  for  her  own  demands." 

Among  her  early  pastors  we  find  the  honored  names 
of  men,  whose  untiring  zeal,  faithful  labors,  and  wise 
counsels  accomplished  much  for  Christ.  Rev.  Thomas 
Killingworth  was  the  first  pastor,  and  served  the 
church  and  cause  faithfully  until  his  death.  His  pas- 
torate continued  about  nineteen  years,  during  which 
time  he  was  Judge  of  the  County  Court  for  several 
years,  and  was  highly  esteemed  as  a  man  and  a  Chris- 
tian. He  was  followed  by  Rev.  Timothy  Brooks, 
Rev.  Nathaniel  Jenkins,  Rev.  Robert  Kelsay,  and 
Rev.  Henry  Smalley,  who  filled  the  pastorate  for 
forty-nine  years. 

Mr.  Challiss  was  the  eleventh  pastor  of  the  church. 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  207 

Only  ten  persons  hnd  presided  over  this  church  as 
pastor  during  its  entire  previous  history  of  one  liun- 
dred  and  sixty  two  years.  When  Mr.  Challiss  en- 
tered upon  tlie  pastorate,  the  church  was  worshiping 
in  its  fourth  meeting-house,  the  present  substantial 
brick  edifice  erected  in  1801  and  remodeled  in  1851. 
Its  dimensions  are  forty-five  feet  by  sixty-three,  and 
having  side  galleries  as  well  as  one  over  the  vestibule, 
it  is  capable  of  seating  five  hundred  persons. 

He  found  the  church  in  a  good,  healthful  condition, 
having  one  hundred  and  eighty  members,  and  a  small 
but  interesting  Sunday-school, — out  of  debt,  with  their 
meeting-house  recently  remodeled,  and  possessing  a 
small  endowment.  They  were  waiting  to  give  their 
new  pastor  a  hearty  welcome,  and  were  prepared  to 
enter  with  him  upon  any  plans  or  work  to  promote 
the  cause.  Temporary  apathy  and  limited  territory 
seem  to  be  the  only  difficulties  which  were  in  the  way 
of  progress. 

In  reference  to  his  removal  to  this  field,  he  says  : 
"Having  received  a  unanimous  call  from  the  Cohan- 
sey  Church,  to  become  their  pastor,  after  prayerful  de- 
liberation I  have  agreed  to  accept  the  call,  and  enter 
upon  my  duties  there  on  the  first  of  April,  1852." 

He  accepted  the  call  some  months  before  he  entered 
the  field,  but  from  the  time  he  consented  to  become 
their  pastor  he  seemed  to  feel  a  pastor's  anxiety  for 
18 


208  Ri^^^-  JAMES  \r.  CHAirASS. 

them.  During  tliis  interval  lie  wrote  to  one  of  the 
deacons  of  the  church — "  I  am  exceedingly  anxious  to 
see  my  dear  brethren  at  Cohansey, — standing  in  the 
relation  I  do  to  them,  of  pastor-elect,  and  feeling  as  I 
do  a  strong  attachment  for  them,  and  an  anxious  de- 
sire for  their  prosperity.  I  sincerely  hope  the  church 
will  not  suffer  material  injury  by  being  destitute  of 
pastoral  watch-care  and  labors,  but  that  the  great 
Shepherd  and  Bishop  of  souls  will  take  care  of  his 
flock,  and  lead  them  into  green  pastures,  and  beside 
the  still  waters.  My  prayer  for  the  church  is  that 
'  They  may  prosper  and  be  in  health  even  as  their 
souls  prosper.'  Brethren,  pray  for  me,  that  when  I 
come,  I  may  come  in  the  fulness  of  the  blessing  of  the 
gospel  of  peace."  Again  he  said,  "  I  commenced  my 
labors  in  this  important  field,  being  fully  persuaded  in 
my  own  mind  that  the  Lord  directed  my  \tay  to  this 
church  and  would  prosper  the  work  of  my  hands." 
It  has  seemed  somewhat  remarkable  to  me,  that  in  the 
providence  of  God  I  should  be  called  to  labor  with 
two  of  the  oldest  churches  in  our  country, — Cohansey, 
the  oldest  church  in  all  West  Jersey,  and  Lower 
Dublin,  the  very  oldest  church  in  Pennsylvania. 
And  now  following  such  men  as  Elder  Henry  Smalley 
and  Brother  E.  D.  Fendall,  I  feel  the  importance  of 
my  position  and  the  solemn  responsibility  of  my  office 
as  pastor  of  this  ancient  flock.     Oh,  that  the  eternal 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  209 

Spirit  may  bless  my  labors  here  as  in  other  places. 
If  thy  presence  come  not  with  me,  why  hast  thou  sent 
me  hither?" 

It  was  soon  made  evident  tliat  God's  presence  and 
blessing  were  with  this  pastor  in  his  new  charge.  In 
May,  the  church  held  a  yearly  meeting,  commencing 
on  Saturday  and  continuing  through-  the  following 
Monday.  This  was  reviving  an  old  and  time-honored 
custom  of  the  church,  which,  because  of  certain  abuses, 
had  been  discontinued  for  some  years.  This  meeting 
was  a  season  of  much  interest  and  profit.  The  con- 
gregations were  large,  marked  attention  was  given  to 
the  word  preached,  and  many  felt  that  the  interest  of 
the  Redeemer's  cause  was  advanced.  To  the  older 
members  of  the  church  it  was  a  time  of  special  refresh- 
ing, recalling  many  hallowed  associations  of  the  past 
and  girding  them  anew  for  the  duties  and  privileges 
of  their  Christian  pilgrimage.  Some  visitor  at  that 
meeting  gave  his  impressions  of  the  field  and  the  pros- 
pects through  one  of  the  religious  papers.  After 
referring  to  the  formation  of  neighboring  churches 
from  this  body,  by  which  the  church  was  weakened 
numerically  and  some  of  their  members  were  dis- 
hearfened,  and  feared  lest  they  should  have  to  disband, 
he  adds,  "  But  even  in  their  low  state,  God  had  not 
forgotten  them.  He  graciously  revived  them,  and  put 
it  into  their  hearts  to  repair  and  beautify  his  sanctuary. 


210  REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS. 

This  work  was  accomplished  last  year,  and  now  their 
old  brick  meeting-honse — constructed  fifty  years  since 
— is  one  of  the  largest,  most  substantially  built  and 
tastefully  finished,  in  West  Jersey ;  while  its  external 
appearance  is  sufficiently  antique  to  remind  you  of 
other  days.  But  the  most  cheering  feature  is  their 
present  united  .state,  and  the  interest  they  manifest  in 
every  good  work.  The  church  is  able,  intelligent,  and 
unusually  happy,  with  their  estimable  pastor,  our  be- 
loved Brother  Challiss.  Blessed  with  such  tokens,  we 
believe  that  she  may  yet  stand  forth  with  even  more 
vigor  and  beauty  than  formerly." 

It  is  evident  that  both  the  pastor  and  church  felt 
happy  and  hopeful  in  the  relations  they  sustained  to 
each  other.  The  pastor,  in  writing  to  a  dear  old 
friend,  said,  "  We  are  here  with  the  old  Cohansey 
Church,  and  have  a  very  pleasant  field  of  labor,  a 
beautiful  meeting-house,  and  a  neat  and  new  dwelling- 
house  just  suited  to  our  minds.  The  prospect  for  use- 
fulness here  is  quite  encouraging." 

The  church,  in  her  letter  to  the  Association,  Sep- 
tember, 1852,  said,  "During  the  past  year  w^e  have 
experienced  some  changes  in  providence.  Our  former 
pastor  left  us  rather  unexpectedly  for  another  field. 
Very  soon  after,  the  mind  of  the  church  was  directed 
to  Brother  J.  M.  Challiss  as  a  suitable  pastor.  He 
accepted  a  call  from  the  church,  and  entered  upon  his 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHAL/JSS.  211 

duties  on  the  first  of  April  last.  His  settlement  is 
altogether  satisfactory  and  suitable;  the  oldest  church 
is  now  again  associated  with  the  oldest  pastor  in  the 
Association,  and  we  are  looking  for  gradual  and  per- 
manent prosperity." 

And  now  pleasantly  located,  among  an  appreciating 
people,  ready  to  co-operate  with  him  in  every  good 
work,  this  pastor  of  many  years  experience,  sought  to 
devise  such  plans  and  so  perseveringly  and  prayerfully 
to  prosecute  his  work,  that  the  cause  of  Christ  might 
be  advanced  among  this  ]3eople,  both  in  the  conversion 
of  souls  and  the  development  of  the  Christian  char- 
acter and  usefulness  of  all  the  members  of  this  vene- 
rable church. 

Conscious  that  lie  was  getting  old  and  had  proba- 
bly entered  upon  his  last  pastorate,  he  sought  the 
more  earnestly  to  do  well  and  fully  the  work  assigned 
him  of  God,  and  by  constant,  plodding  labor  to  com- 
pensate for  what  loss  he  had  suffered  of  youthful  vi- 
vacity and  vigor.  He  still  retained  much  of  that  elas- 
ticity of  step  and  quickness  of  action,  and  even 
youthful  appearance  of  countenance  which  had  so 
characterized  his  early  life,  and  which  so  concealed  his 
advancing  years  that  most  persons  thought  him  a 
nmch  younger  man  than  he  really  was.  Indeed,  it 
required  a  close  contrast  with  his  earlier  life  to  dis- 
cover that  advancing  years   had  produced  any  great 

18* 


212  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

chantre.  Yet  he  was  fullv  conscious  of  the  fact  that 
his  physical  and  mental  activity  and  vigor  were  be- 
ginning to  decline,  and  that  old  age  with  its  varied 
infirmities  was  gradually  and  surely  coming  on.  So 
he  girded  his  loins  afresh  and  redoubled  his  diligence, 
that  the  cause  of  Christ  might  not  suffer  from  any  de- 
cline of  his  natural  powers  and  that  he  might  be  found 
faithful  at  the  Master's  appearing. 

Entering  upon  his  work  with  such  consecration  of 
purpose,  and  with  dependence  upon  divine  assistance, 
it  was  not  long  before  he  was  permitted  to  make  this 
record  of  God's  blessing  upon  his  labors, — a  record 
made  with  the  grateful  heart  of  an  anxious  pastor  and 
Christian  father.  "With  a  united  church  and  faith- 
ful labor,  I  was  soon  permitted  to  see  a  'troubling  of 
the  waters,'  and  precious  souls  hopefully  converted  to 
God.  Among  the  first  that  I  baptized  was  my  only 
daughter,  giving  herself  to  Christ  in  the  morning  of 
her  life.  'Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul;  and  all  that  is 
within  me  bless  his  holy  name.'  For  these  tokens  of 
God's  favor  my  heart  gives  special  thanks." 

The  number  received  into  the  church  at  this  time 
was  not  large,  but  it  was  a  season  of  unusual  interest, 
and  the  church  was  much  strengthened.  The  mem- 
bers generally  were  greatly  encouraged,  and  even  those 
to  whom  the  future  history  of  the  church  had  seemed 
so  dark  and   uncertain,  were  constrained  to  rejoice  in 


REV    JAMES  31.   CHALLTSS.  213 

what  God  was  doing  for  them  through  the  labors  of 
their  pastor,  and  to  feel  a  renewed  assurance  that  this, 
their  beloved  Zion  would  still  continue,  and  with  much 
of  her  former  glory.  These  feelings  found  expression 
in  the  letter  of  the  church  to  the  next  Association,  in 
which  they  said:  "It  has  been  our  happiness  to  expe- 
rience a  good  degree  of  spiritual  health  and  prosperity 
during  the  year  past.  Our  congregations  are  large, 
our  pews  are  all  rented,  and  we  are  united  in  love  and 
prayer,  and  are  much  encouraged." 

During  the  following  four  years  there  was  nothing 
special  in  the  history  of  this  church  and  pastor.  They 
continued  to  live  and  labor  together  in  harmony  and 
love, — "growing  in  grace  and  in  the  knowledge  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ."  A  few  were  gath- 
ered in  from  the  world,  and  added  to  their  number 
each  year. 

Mr.  Challiss  always  regarded  it  a  special  privilege 
to  administer  the  ordinance  of  baptism  and  welcome 
members  into  the  fellowship  of  the  church  over  which 
he  presided  as  pastor.  Even  though  the  number  was 
small,  his  heart  rejoiced,  and  he  often  recorded  his 
gratification  and  gratitude  to  God  for  these  privileges. 
January  1,  1854,  he  wTote,  "Happy  New  Year's  day 
at  Roadstown,  in  witnessing  the  willing  obedience  of 
rejoicing  converts!  Surrounded  by  stern  winter,  with 
a  grave  cut  in  the  ice,  I  had  the  pleasure  to  baptize 


214  ^  ^  f '•  '^'i  '^^ES  31.   CIIA  LL ISS. 

six  hopefully  renewed  persons,  three  young  men  and 
three  young  women,  all  in  the  very  vigor  of  their  days. 
Others  anxious  to  enjoy  the  same  privilege  were  una- 
voidably prevented."  On  another  occasion  he  wrote, 
"Yesterday  it  was  my  great  privilege  and  pleasure  to 
baptize  more  professed  believers  in  Jesus  Christ.  It 
is  truly  delightful  to  see  husbands  and  wives,  and 
brothers  and  sisters,  walking  together  in  the  ordi- 
nances of  God." 

But  his  pleasure  in  administering  the  ordinance  and 
his  desire  to  see  additions  to  the  church  did  not  inter- 
fere M'ith  the  great  care  and  prudence  which  he  used 
in  reference  to  those  about  to  make  a  public  confession 
of  faith;  nor  was  he  discouraged  in  his  work  if  times 
of  ingathering  were  less  frequent  or  less  abundant  than 
he  desired  or  even  reasonably  expected.  He  labored 
on,  "instant  in  season  and  out  of  season,"  diligently 
and  carefully  sowing  the  good  seed,  and  patiently  and 
hopefully  waiting  for  the  harvest. 

It  was  not  until  the  winter  of  1857-8  that  he  was 
permitted  to  witness  the  great  revival  of  his  pastorate 
with  the  old  Cohansey  Church.  Years  of  faithful 
sowing  had  passed,  and  now  the  time  of  harvest  had 
come. 

Of  this  memorable  season,  Mr.  Challiss  wrote  in 
February,  1858.  "As  a  matter  of  encouragement  to 
the  churches,  permit  me  to  say,  that  'God  has  done 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  215 

GTeat  thino;s  for  us'  at  Roadstown,  whereof  we  are 
glad.  Tlie  Lord  was  pleased  to  pour  out  a  spirit  of 
prayer  on  this  church,  and  weeks  before  our  meetings 
commenced,  all  seemed  to  pray,  'O  Lord,  revive  thy 
W'Ork.'  The  church  resolved  unitedly  to  give  their 
time  to  the  work  before  them.  Morning  as  well  as 
evening  they  could  be  seen  wending  their  way  to  the 
house  of  God.  They  resolved  to  invite  Brother  E.  C. 
Ambler,  of  Woodstown,  to  come  over  and  help  us ; 
'  he  came  as  soon  as  he  was  sent  for,'  and  the  Lord 
came  with  him.  Very  soon  the  interest  increased  and 
continued  to  increase;  the  church  being  of  one  accord 
in  one  place  in  prayer  for  three  weeks. 

"  Last  Saturday  and  Sunday  were  great  days  in  the 
history  of  the  Cohansey  Church.  On  Saturday,  in  the 
presence  of  hundreds  of  witnesses,  the  young  converts 
gave  a  reason  of  their  hope  with  much  clearness,  and 
on  Lord's  Day  I  baptized  thirty-seven  converts.  Of 
these,  nineteen  were  men  in  the  morning  of  life,  and 
two  of  them  were  accompanied  by  their  wives. 

"This  precious  work  of  grace,  I  think,  will  be  a 
great  blessing  to  this  community,  having  taken  hold 
of  the  permanent  families  irr  the  congregation.  This 
meeting  has  been  characterized  by  strict  order,  great 
stillness  and  solemnity.  Preaching  of  the  word,  with 
the  prayers  and  labors  of  the  church  have  been  the 
means  blessed   of  God,  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  in  this 


216  REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

revival.  Several  others  are  now  waiting  the  privilege 
of  following  Christ  in  baptism.  The  work  is  spread- 
ing. To  God  be  all  the  glory."  The  baptism  on  this 
occasion  was  the  largest  baptism  ever  known  to  have 
taken  place  in  connection  with  this  church. 

The  pastor  wrote  again,  March  8th.  "  The  cloud 
of  mercy  that  has  been  hanging  over  us  at  Roadstown 
and  Greenwich  is  still  enlarging.  Yesterday,  in  the 
presence  of  an  immense  assembly  of  solemn  and  atten- 
tive spectators,  I  baptized  twenty-three  more  professed 
believers  in  Jesus  Christ.  Fourteen  of  these  unite 
with  the  Greenwich  Church,  now  without  a  pastor, 
and  at  whose  request  I  baptized  these.  The  other 
nine  unite  with  the  church  at  Roadstown." 

In  May  following,  he  wrote  again.  "  This  is  to 
record  the  goodness  of  the  eternal  Spirit  in  granting 
the  church  of  Cohansey,  under  my  care,  another  pre- 
cious revival  of  religion.  This  precious  ingathering 
began  in  answer  to  prayer,  about  the  beginning  of  the 
year,  and  resulted  in  adding  to  the  church  over  fifty 
converts  that  now  go  on  their  way  with  joy." 

The  church  reported  to  the  next  Association  fifty- 
three  added  by  baptism,*  and  four  by  restoration  and 
experience,  and  said,  "  We  would  unite  in  praising 
God  for  the  eventful  day  in  which  we  live,  especially 
for  the  general  revival  influences  which  have  blessed 
our  land.     AVe  rejoice  to  communicate  the  good  news. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  217 

that  God  has  been  pleased  to  visit  us  with  a  precious 
revival  during  the  year — a  gracious  work  of  grace, 
that  resulted  in  the  hopeful  conversion  of  many  pre- 
cious souls." 

It  was  a  happy  day  in  the  experience  of  this  vener- 
ble  pastor  and  old  church  when  so  many  rejoicing 
converts  were  welcomed  to  their  fellowship  and  sat 
down  with  them  for  the  first  time  at  the  Lord's  table. 
The  pastor's  address  to  them  was  full  of  tenderness 
and  practical  interest,  and  his  heart  was  overflowing 
with  gratitude  and  praise  to  God.  The  church  was 
much  encouraged  and  greatly  strengthened  for  their 
future  work.  Both  pastor  and  people  felt  that  they 
had  reached  a  higher  plane  in  their  Christian  expe- 
rience and  faith  in  God's  promises.  For  years  they 
had  faithfully  labored  and  earnestly  prayed  for  a 
season  like  this,  and  now  it  was  fitting  that  they 
should  rejoice  over  the  gathered  sheaves  of  this  gra- 
cious harvest. 

The  following  year  witnessed  no  special  work  of 
grace  among  them,  nor  was  it  marked  by  any  matters 
of  unusual  interest  in  the  history  of  this  pastor  and 
people.  They  labored  on  together  pleasantly  in  the 
great  work  of  their  Master,  seeking  to  train  the  young 
converts  and  develop  their  powers  for  Christian  use- 
fulness and  enjoyment.  Many  pleasant  seasons  were 
enjoyed  by  them,  in  the  house  of  God,  and  in  their 


218  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

social  and  family  gatherings  for  religions  services. 
But  these  were  not  without  the  usual  blendings  of 
times  of  anxiety  and  sorrow.  Their  hearts  were  some- 
times made  anxious  and  sad  by  the  wanderings  or 
waywardness  of  some  member  of  the  flock,  and  they 
often  had  sorrow,  but  not  without  hope,  as  one  and 
another  of  the  faithful  of  the  flock  Avas  called  from  the 
church  militant  to  join  the  church  triumphant. 

The  pastor  and  his  wife  spent  much  time  among  the 
people.  Their  own  family  had  been  reduced  to  the 
original  number,  by  their  children  leaving  home  for 
business  and  settling  in  life.  The  last  child  at  home, 
the  only  daughter,  Avas  now  married  and  residing  near 
them,  and  there  were  fewer  cares  and  ties  to  keep 
them  at  home.  Their  own  people  greatly  desired  the 
visits  of  their  pastor  and  wife,  always  welcomed  them 
to  their  homes,  and  received  much  profit  from  these 
visits.  All  through  his  ministry  Mr.  Challiss  had  re- 
garded pastoral  visiting  as  an  important  and  efficient 
part  of  his  work,  and  perhaps  had  never  done  more 
than  he  was  now  doing  at  the  closing  years  of  his  last 
pastorate. 

His  salary  at  this  time,  with  the  many  little  gifts  of 
his  kind  people,  made  his  support  abundant  for  his 
diminished  family,  and  placed  within  their  reach  all 
the  necessaries  and  comforts  of  life,  and  still  left  them 
the   opportunity   of    contributing   something    to    the 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  219 

varied  claims  of  benevolence ;  while  the  continncd 
gifts  and  generous  offers  of  a  thoughtful  and  loving 
son  added  luxuries,  which  otherwise  they  would  not 
have  indulged  in,  and  relieved  them  from  all  appre- 
hensions of  future  want. 

Mr.  Challiss  had  entered  upon  his  work  as  pastor  of 
the  old  Cohansey  Church  with  conviction  that  it 
would  be  his  last  pastorate.  This  conviction  remained 
with  him  and  had  grown  into  the  clearly  defined  pur- 
pose of  soon  retiring  from  the  pastoral  office.  But 
year  after  year  passed  and  he  continued  at  his  post  of 
duty,  and  God  blessed  his  labors.  Early  in  1859,  he 
concluded  to  resign  and  leave  the  field  at  the  close  of 
his  eighth  pastoral  year.  He  was  prompted  to  this 
decision,  not  because  he  loved  the  work  less,  nor  that 
his  people  desired  him  to  leave  them ;  but  because  he 
knew  he  was  growing  old  and  was  conscious  of  the 
infirmities  of  advanced  years,  and  could  not  so  well 
endure  the  toils  and  anxieties  of  the  pastoral  relation, 
nor  so  well  discharge  the  ordinary  duties  of  that  office. 
He  did  not  desire  to  cease  laborino;  for  Christ,  but  felt 
that  even  out  of  the  pastorate  he  might  do  good  ser- 
vice in  the  cause,  preaching  in  destitute  neighbor- 
hoods, supplying  vacant  pulpits,  and  aiding  pastors  in 
special  and  protracted  services.  In  reference  to  his 
present  charge,  he  said,  "  The  interests  of  the  cause 
19 


220  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

there  demanded  more  labor  than  I  conld  endure,  and 
a  younger  man  was  better  fitted  for  the  \york." 

His  children  also  desired  that  he  should  be  free 
from  the  constant  care  and  necessary  labor  and  fric- 
tion of  the  pastorate,  and  be  in  a  condition  of  volun- 
tary labor,  when  he  could  do  or  not  do,  according  as 
his  health  and  the  infirmities  of  advanced  years  would 
admit.  They  assured  him  of  all  necessary  assistance 
to  meet  the  wants  and  comforts  of  his  remaining  years. 
His  son,  Mr.  Luther  C.  Challiss,  wrote  to  him  from 
Kansas,  July,  1859,  "I  am  glad  you  are  looking  for 
a  comfortable  dwelling  in  Bridgeton.  I  really  hope 
you  will  get  one  to  suit  you  without  regard  to  expense. 
I  will  furnish  you  all  the  money  you  want,  and  at  any 
time  you  will  notify  me.  It  was  my  intention  to  buy 
you  a  house  when  I  came  on.  Whenever  your 
finances  are  not  easy  and  you  have  need  for  money, 
notify  me  at  once.  This  is  my  wish,  and  I  hope  you 
will  write  me  freely  about  it." 

Prompted  by  the  considerations  named,  and  re- 
lieved from  all  anxiety  about  future  wants,  he  con- 
cluded to  retire  from  pastoral  labors  and  reside  in  the 
city  of  Bridgeton.  At  the  communion  season  of  the 
church  in  August,  1859,  he  gave  notice  of  his 
determination  to  resign,  and  close  his  labors  with 
them  in  the  following  spring,  but  his  formal  resigna- 
tion was  not  handed   in   till  two  months  later.     The 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  221 

following  is  quoted  from  that  paper,  which  is  dated 
October  31,  1859  :  , 

"Agreeably  to  notice  given  you  two  months  since,  I 
now  tender  to  you,  after  deliberate  consideration  and 
prayer,  my  resignation  as  pastor  of  the  flock  over 
which  God  has  made  me  overseer.  This  resignation 
to  take  effect  on  the  first  of  April  next.  This,  to  me, 
is  a  painful  act,  from  my  long  connection  with  you  as 
pastor,  my  ardent  attachment  to  you,  and  ray  anxious 
desire  for  your  future  prosperity.  But  being  now  ad- 
vanced in  years,  and  hoping  that  some  one  more  in  the 
prime  of  life,  would  be  better  fitted  for  this  field  of  la- 
bor, I  do  now  in  anticipation,  bid  you  farewell.  To 
God  be  all  the  glory  for  the  good  that  has  been  ac- 
complished. And  wherein  I  have  failed  to  preach  the 
gospel  in  faithfulness,  I  beg  forgiveness  of  my  Master 
and  of  my  brethren.  May  God,  the  Holy  Ghost,  raise 
in  power  what  in  weakness  has  been  sown.  As  to 
your  future  course,  may  the  Lord  be  pleased  to  give 
you  divine  direction  in  choosing  a  new  pastor  for  this 
important  field  of  labor.  That  the  God  of  all  grace 
may  be  with  you  and  bless  you  indeed,  is  the  sincere 
prayer  of  your  pastor." 

The  church  appreciated  the  labors  of  their  pastor, 
and  anticipated  his  leaving  with  much  regret.  In 
their  letter  to  the  Association,  September,  1859,  they 
said :  "  We  have  a  matter  of  painful  interest  to  com- 


222  REV-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

munioate  to  you.  Our  esteemed  pastor,  who  has  beeu 
with  us  jn  great  harmony  now  for  near  eight  years  has 
given  notice  that  he  expects  in  a  short  time  to  tender 
his  resignation  to  the  church,  and  retire  from  the  pas- 
toral office  altogether  on  the  first  of  April  next." 

Before  the  pastor  left  them  the  church  gave  expres- 
sion to  their  feelings  in  a  resolution  which  we  find  in 
one  of  the  county  newspapers  with  some  accompanying 
remarks : 

"We  learn  that  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  pastor  of  the 
Roadstown  Baptist  Church,  is  expected  to  preach  his 
farewell  sermon  on  the  fourth  Sunday  in  this  month. 
He  has  labored  faithfully  and  successfully  for  that 
church  during  the  past  eight  years,  and  leaves  with 
the  design  of  retiring  from  the  active  duties  of  the 
pastoral  office.  The  following  resolution,  adopted  by 
the  church,  as  expressive  of  their  appreciation  of  his 
services,  has  been  sent  us  by  the  clerk : 

"  Resolved,  That  as  a  church  of  Christ,  we  do  high- 
ly appreciate  the  labors  of  our  pastor,  as  a  faithful 
and  laborious  servant  of  Jesus  Christ,  in  building  up 
his  cause  and  kingdom.  As  a  church,  we  feel  thank- 
ful to  God  for  the  kind  feeling  and  harmony  that  has 
existed  between  pastor  and  people  for '  so  many  years, 
and  regret  that  the  union  is  so  soon  to  be  dissolved." 

In  a  general  review  of  his  pastorate  with  the  Co- 
hausey  Church,  Mr.  Challiss  says,  "During  the  eight 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS.  223 

years  of  my  pastorate  I  was  favored  to  see  them  dwell 
together  in  unity  and  to  knoAV  that  they  regarded 
these  years  as  years  of  continued  peace  and  prosperity. 
In  reviewing  my  connection  with  tliat  church  I  can 
say  with  safety,  that  the  years  I  spent  with  them  are 
among  the  happiest  years  of  my  life.  During  ray 
ministry  there  the  congregation  was  increased,  the 
church  greatly  encouraged,  and  one  hundred  and  two 
buried  with  Christ  in  baptism." 

Of  those  baptized,  eighty-eight  were  i-eceived  into 
the  fellowship  of  the  Cohansey  Church,  and  the  others 
united  with  the  Greenwich  Church.  Durina:  his 
pastorate  the  membershij)  of  the  church  increased  from 
one  hundred  and  eighty  to  two  hundred  and  twenty- 
three,  some  measures  of  importance  to  the  prosperity 
of  the  church  Avere  cordially  adopted,  and  his  con- 
nection with  them  was  regarded  as  a  very  successful 
pastorate,  creditable  to  himself,  profitable  to  the 
church,  and  honoring  to  Christ. 

He  did  not,  therefore,  leave  this  field  and  the  pas- 
toral work  as  one  feeling  chagrined  and  disheartened 
by  failures;  but  as  a  veteran  soldier,  whose  life  has 
been  spent  in  doing  good  service  for  his  country,  re- 
signs his  post  after  a  successful  campaign,  because  un- 
fitted by  years  to  endure  longer  the  burden  and  heat 
of  the  day,  but  rejoicing  to  recount  the  toils  and 
triumphs  of  the  past. 

19=^ 


224  RP^V-  -fAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Now  a  new  era  was  reached  in  the  life  of  this  pas- 
tor. He  had  looked  carefully  at  the  changes  involved 
until  he  had  a  clear  and  full  understanding  of  all 
their  bearings.  It  was  not  simply  a  change  of  pas- 
torates— leaving  one  charge  to  assume  another.  Even 
these  changes  had  always  been  regarded  by  him  with 
solemn  interest,  though  they  had  occasioned  no  break 
in  the  pastoral  work,  and  scarcely  a  perceptible  in- 
terruption of  the  pastoral  relations — having  never  lost 
a  single  Lord's  Day  in  the  interim  of  his  pastorates, 
but  always  preaching  his  introductory  sermon  as  pas- 
tor of  his  new  charge  the  Sunday  after  preaching  his 
farewell  sermon  as  pastor  of  his  former  charge.  But 
now  he  leaves  this  pastorate  to  enter  no  more  upon 
pastoral  relations. 

Thirty-eight  years  had  passed  since  he  entered  upon 
these  relations  as  the  youthful  pastor  of  the  old  Upper 
Freehold  Church.  He  entered  upon  the  work  with 
a  deep  sense  of  its  responsibilities,  yet  with  an  earnest 
desire  for  its  duties  and  privileges.  During  these 
years  he  had  constantly  borne  the  responsibilities  and 
rejoiced  in  the  duties  and  privileges  of  this  work. 
His  position  of  trust  and  authority  as  pastor  had  ever 
been  cheerfully  recognized,  and  he  had  always  shared 
largely  in  the  confidence  and  affection  of  his  people. 
He  had  been  accustomed  to  meet  his  ministering 
brethren  as  a  fellow-pastor  and  to  be  recognized  as  an 


RF.V.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS.  225 

efficient  co-worker  in  all  the  departments  of  Christian 
labor  and  fully  qualified  to  bear  his  part  in  their  de- 
liberations and  duties.  He  had  been  so  long  in  the 
pastoral  office  that  its  relations  and  duties  had  become 
the  habits  of  his  life,  confirmed  by  advanced  age. 
He  fully  apprehended  the  somewhat  anomalous  posi- 
tion of  those  who  retire  from  the  pastoral  office  on 
account  of  their  advanced  years,— how  gradually,  yet 
almost  necessarily  they  drop  out  of  professional  life 
and  settle  into  the  position  of  the  hearer  of  the  word 
instead  of  the  expounder.  He  knew  that  he  would 
not  be  entirely  exempt  fj'om  this  general  rule,  and 
that  he  would  feel  very  sensibly  the  changes  involved 
in  his  retiring  from  the  pastoral  office.  Nor  was  he 
insensible  to  the  opinion  of  some  ministering  brethren, 
who  thought  that  he  was  still  too  young  a  man,  and 
possessed  too  much  vitality  and  endurance  to  retire 
from  an  office  work,  so  much  in  need  of  experienced 
and  devoted  laborers. 

No  wonder  that  he  hesitated  in  his  purpose  of  re- 
signing, and  held  the  question  in  suspense  so  many 
months.  He  still  loved  the  work  and  desired  to  do 
what  he  could  for  the  advancement  of  Christ's  kinir- 
dom;  and  though  finally  impelled  to  the  conclusion 
that  it  was  his  duty  now  to  retire  from  the  pastoral 
office,  he  doubtless  found  much  relief  in  these  hours 
of  conflicting  claims  in  his  purpose  to  continue  preach- 


226  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   ClIALLISS. 

ing  and  laboring  for  Christ  as  opportunity  and  ability 
would  permit. 

Just  here  it  is  fitting  to  introduce  a  note  addressed 
to  the  author,  by  Rev.  T.  G.  Wright,  who  succeeded 
Mr.  Challiss  in  his  last  pastorate,  and  who  is  still  the 
efficient  and  beloved  pastor  of  "old  Cohansey  Church." 

"  Your  wish  that,  as  successor  of  Brother  Challiss  in 
the  pastorate  of  the  First  Cohansey  Baptist  Church,  I 
should  append  a  note  to  the  Memorial  you  are  pre- 
paring, I  regard  as  more  complimentary  to  myself 
than  essential  to  the  work  in  your  hands.  Yet  it  is 
pleasant  to  add  my  testimony  to  the  value  of  Brother 
Challiss'  labors  with  this  church. 

"He  was  evidently  a  man  of  great  kindliness,  ex- 
actness, and  reliability,  combined  with  Christian  con- 
scientiousness— a  good  preacher  of  Christ,  and  faithful 
as  a  pastor,  neglecting  none  of  the  interests  of  Zion, 
either  within  the  bounds  of  the  parish  or  beyond.  As 
a  consequence,  I  found  the  church  harmonious  in 
spirit,  in  a  good  financial  condition,  the  register  well 
kept,  the  various  objects  of  benevolence  cared  for  and 
encouraged,  and  the  people  well  prepared  to  receive  a 
new  pastor  while  they  parted  with  an  old  one. 

"Brother  Challiss'  pastoral  duty  terminated  by  his 
resignation  with  the  last  I^ord's  Day  in  March,  1860. 
During  its  eight  years  continuance,  he  baptized  eighty- 
eight    into  the  fellowship    of  this  church.     Of  these, 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  227 

few  have  since  fallen  ont  by  the  way,  while  many  of 
the  present  pillars  in  the  church  were  then  put  in  their 
place. 

"His  time  of  office  being  thus  ended,  and  he  wishing 
to  occupy  the  dwelling  then  used  as  a  parsonage  one 
month  longer,  the  privilege  was  readily  granted,  and 
my  labors  did  not  commence  till  the  first  Lord's  Day 
in  May.  During  this  interval  he  continued  to  serve 
the  church,  and  consequently  was  present  at  the  next 
church  meeting  to  give  me  the  hand  of  welcome. 
This  he  did  in  his  own  peculiarly  warm  and  impres- 
sive manner,  and  the  occasion  was  one  of  no  ordinary 
interest. 

"This  was  his  last  official  act  among  this  people. 
Yet  he  has  preached  to  them  repeatedly  since,  when 
not  otherwise  engaged,  and  he  seemed  ever  to  cherish  a 
strong  aifection  for  the  brethren  here,  which  was  duly 
reciprocated.  As  an  evidence  of  the  latter  fact,  I  may 
state  that  the  brethren  here  cheerfully  took  upon  them 
the  labor  of  removing  his  goods  to  Bridgeton,  while  at 
the  same  time,  they  made  him  an  ovation,  as  they  did 
the  incoming  pastor. 

"But  he  is  gone.  His  work  on  earth  is  ended  and 
his  record  is  above.  May  we  be  as  well  prepared  for 
the  Master's  summons  and  leave  behind  us  as  many 
memorials  of  our  faithfulness  and  love  to  Christ  and 
his  cause." 


228  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

The  record  Mr.  Challiss  has  left  of  his  pastoral 
work  is  deeply  and  tenderly  cherished  in  the  hearts  of 
the  people  he  served ;  the  confidence  always  reposed  in 
hira;  the  honors  conferred  upon  him;  and  the  results 
following  his  labors  might  well  gratify  the  heart  of 
any  man.  According  to  his  own  memorandum,  he 
baptized,  while  pastor  at  Upper  Freehold  309 ;  while 
at  Lower  Dublin  137;  while  at  Marlton  and  Moores- 
town  94;  while  at  Cohansey  102 — making  a  total  of 
642,  or  an  average  of  nearly  seventeen  for  each  year 
he  spent  in  the  pastoral  office.  During  this  time,  ac- 
cording to  the  same  memorandum,  he  married  353 
couple,  and  preached  the  funeral  sermons  of  394  per- 
sons. 

Perhaps  I  cannot  close  this  chapter  better  than  by 
quoting  from  a  paper  written  by  his  own  pen,  Decem- 
ber, 1860,  about  nine  months  after  retiring  from  the 
pastoral  work. 

"Having  spent  nearly  forty  years  in  the  pastoral 
office,  and  some  of  the  infirmities  of  old  age  coming 
upon  me,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  to  retire  from  the 
pastorate  altogether.  This  conclusion  was  reached 
with  a  view  of  preaching  for  destitute  churches  occa- 
sionally, and  being  free  from  pastoral  responsibility. 
Accordingly  I  resigned  the  care  of  the  church  in  April, 
1860,  purchased  a  property  on  Bank  Street,  in  Bridge- 
ton,  the  county  town,  and  in  July  following  we  re- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS  229 

moved  to  our  comfortable  little  home,  in  which  we 
expect  to  end  our  days. 

"During  my  ministry  among  the  churches  I  have 
had  but  a  limited  salary;  the  highest  I  ever  received 
was  six  hundred  dollars,  and  most  of  the  time  only 
from  three  to  four  hundred  a  year.  Yet  with  econ- 
omy and  industry  I  have  always  aimed  to  live  within 
my  income.  It  has  ever  been  a  principle  with  me  to 
'owe  no  man  anything' — and  while  I  united  with  my 
brethren  in  bearing  the  cause  of  missions  and  in  the 
ordinary  improvements  of  the  churches,  I  have  labored 
to  lay  by  in  store  some  support  for  old  age. 

"My  flimily  having  grown  to  years  and  left  us  to 
pursue  business  for  themselves,  we  are  called  to  be 
separated  from  those  we  love  by  time  and  distance. 
Most  of  my  sons  have  found  a  home  in  the  great 
West,  where  God,  in  his  providence  has  greatly  pros- 
pered their  way — so  that  they  have  a  heart  and  a  hand 
to  render  us  whatever  assistance  we  may  need  to  make 
us  comfortable  the  remainder  of  our  lives. 

"Upon  the  whole,  I  have  abundant  reason  to  bless 
the  Lord  and  take  courage.  May  the  Lord  keep  us 
from  the  evil,  and  preserve  us  safe  to  his  kingdom  and 
glory; — is  the  prayer  of  a  sinner  saved  by  grace." 


CHAPTER  XII. 

OUT    OF    THE    PASTOEATE STILL    AT   WORK. 

Ajii-il,  URO—Ai^rll,  1SG8. 

THE  declared  purpose  of  Mr.  Challiss  to  continue 
at  work,  though  freed  from  pastoral  responsibili- 
ties, was  put  to  an  early  test.  The  people  of  his  late 
charge  requested  the  continuance  of  his  labors  until 
the  coming  of  his  successor,  Rev.  T.  G.  Wright,  who 
entered  upon  the  pastorate  on  the  first  of  May.  He 
cheerfully  acceded  to  this  request,  and  during  this 
time,  not  only  supplied  the  pulpit  on  the  Lord's  Day, 
but  performed  all  other  necessary  work  devolving  on 
a  pastor.  Indeed,  it  seemed  dijfficult  for  him  to 
separate,  at  any  time,  the  work  of  preacher  from  that 
of  pastor.  Wherever  called  to  supply  a  church  with- 
out pastoral  care,  he  at  once  recognized  claims  for  ser- 
vice out  of  the  pulpit  as  well  as  in,  and  always  sought 
to  do  the  most  pressing  pastoral  work,  to  the  extent  of 
his  opportunity. 

This  course  kept  his  soul  in  living  sympathy  with 
230 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  231 

the  whole  work  of  the  Christian  minister,  gave  him  a 
warm  place  in  the  hearts  and  families  of  the  afflicted ; 
and  prepared  him  better  for  his  public  ministrations 
to  the  people.  And  this,  too,  explains,  in  part,  why 
his  services,  as  stated  supply,  were  preferred  to  men 
whose  sermons  were  regarded,  in  many  respects, 
superior  to  his.  He  not  only  "  preached  the  word," 
but  also  "  fed  the  flock "  according  to  his  personal 
knowledge  of  their  individual  wants,  and  this  prefer- 
ence for  his  services  was  the  involuntary  tribute  which 
the  believing  heart  pays  to  the  simple  and  practical 
truths  of  the  gospel. 

In  1849,  Luther,  the  third  son  of  Mr.  Challiss,  who 
was  then  just  entering  upon  the  vigor  of  his  early 
manhood,  left  home  for  the  far  West,  to  strike  out  for 
himself  in  the  great  conflicts  of  commercial  life,  and 
settled  at  Booneville,  Missouri.  Two  years  later,  he 
was  joined  by  his  youngest  brother,  George.  Early 
in  September,  1854,  George  located  and  commenced 
business,  where  now  stands  the  city  of  Atchison, 
Kansas,  then  a  waste  place  with  only  a  squatter's 
cabin.  Luther  joined  him  there  in  the  following 
spring.  In  November,  1856,  the  second  son,  Dr.  W. 
L.  Challiss,  moved  with  his  family  to  Kansas,  and 
was  subsequently  followed  by  Joseph,  the  oldest  bro- 
ther and  his  family.  And  now  all  his  sons  and  their 
families  were  living  in  this  far-ott' western  city. 
20 


232  KEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLTSS. 

From  the  first  settlement  of  his  two  sons  at  Atchi- 
son, Mr.  Challiss  felt  great  anxieties  about  the  charac- 
ter and  religious  interests  of  that  place.  His  own 
dear  boys  were  there,  and  he  desired  that  God  should 
be  known  and  honored  there.  He  wrote  to  Luther, 
soon  after  they  had  settled  down  in  this  new  territory, 
"  Kansas  being  in  such  au  unsettled  condition,  I 
should  think,  would  make  it  somewhat  unpleasant  for 
you.  I  hope  you  and  George  will  have  nothing  to  do 
with  their  political  broils.  I  hope  you  will  make  it 
your  business  to  encourage  the  preaching  of  the  gospel 
in  Atchison.  Do  not,  if  possible,  permit  the  place  to 
be  without  the  salutary  influence  of  public  worship." 

In  a  letter  dated  May  6,  1856,  after  alluding  to  the 
unsettled  condition  of  political  affairs  in  the  territory, 
and  the  many  acts  of  lawlessness  and  violence  re- 
ported, he  urged  his  sons  to  pursue  a  consistent, 
straightforward  course,  and,  if  possible,  keep  out  of 
those  angry  contentions  which  were  so  rife  there.  He 
then  added,  "  My  dear  sons,  do  all  in  your  power  to 
encourage  the  influence  of  religion  and  the  public  wor- 
ship of  God  among  the  people.  'Righteousness 
exalteth  a  nation,  but  sin  is  a  reproach  to  any  people.' 
The  religion  of  Jesus  Christ  is  calculated  to  promote 
peace  on  earth  and  good  will  towards  men.  '  It  is 
profitable  unto  all  things,  having  the  promise  of  the 
life  which   now  is,  and  of  that  which  is  to  come.'" 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  233 

In  a  little  more  than  three  weeks  he  wrote  again. 
"  I  fear  very  much  that  your  town  is  a  very  immoral 
place.  My  sons,  do  try  to  practice  the  sentiments 
which  we  have  inculcated  on  your  mind  from  your 
early  childhood.  Let  God's  holy  day  be  revered,  the 
precious  Bible  be  consulted,  and  the  worship  of  God 
maintained  and  a  gospel  ministry  supported.  Exert 
all  your  influence  in  favor  of  God  and  holiness.  Let 
morality  and  religion  have  a  high  place  in  all  your 
actions.  Do  not  let  your  town  remain  without  a  place 
of  public  worship." 

In  less  than  three  months  he  wrote  again.  "  Let 
me  ask  again.  Is  there  any  place  of  worship  in  Atchi- 
son, or  have  you  any  preaching  there  ?  If  not,  can 
you  not  unite  with  others  of  the  first  citizens  of  the 
place  and  put  up  a  house  of  worship,  and  invite  min- 
isters of  the  gospel  to  come  and  preach  in  your  town  ? 
You  must  have  the  means  of  grace  in  your  midst  or 
iniquity  will  prove  the  ruin  of  the  place.  I  am  glad 
to  learn  that  the  troubles  in  Kansas  are  in  hopeful 
prospect  of  being  settled  soon,  and  that  forever.  I 
hope  it  may  be  in  favor  of  freedom." 

At  this  time  neither  of  these  sons  had  professed 
faith  in  Christ.  They  had  located  here  simply  be- 
cause of  the  advantages  the  place  afforded  for  the 
prosecution  of  their  business,  and  the  promise  which 
its  rapid  growth  gave  for  profitable  investments.     But 


234  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

these  earnest  words  from  their  father  show  how  he,  as 
a  man  of  God  and  a  Christian  j^arent,  desired  the  real 
prosperity  of  tlie  place  and  the  highest  profit  to  his 
children. 

His  anxiety  for  the  religious  privileges  of  the  place 
increased  as  his  other  sons  made  it  their  home,  and  as 
the  place  grew  in  importance.  Nor  were  his  sons 
unmindful  of  their  father's  desire,  that  they  should 
earnestly  aid  in  securing  religious  privileges  for  this 
rising  city,  with  whose  material  interests  they  were  so 
intimately  and  prominently  connected. 

A  Baptist  church  was  finally  constituted  in  Atchi- 
son, and  active  measures  were  taken  to  erect  a  suitable 
meeting-house,  as  will  be  seen  by  the  following  quota- 
tions from  a  letter  addressed  to  the  Cohansey  Baptist 
Church,  dated  December  8th,  1858,  and  signed  by  L. 
A.  Alderson,  pastor,  and  W.  L.  Challiss,  clerk. 

"Our  church  was  constituted  on  the  first  day  of 
August  with  nine  members.  Two  have  since  united 
with  us  by  letter,  and  one  has  recently  been  received 
for  baptism.  Among  us  are  eight  or  ten  other  Bap- 
tists, worthy  brethren  and  sisters,  whom  we  expect  to 
unite  with  us.  We  have  the  proper  elements  with 
which  to  lay  the  foundation  of  a  successful  Baptist 
church. 

"  We  wish  to  commence  the  building  of  a  house  of 
worshij)  early  in  the  spring.     For  this  purpose,  Mr. 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS.  235 

L.  C.  Challiss,  of  this  place,  has  given  us  two  lots,  in 
desirable  situations,  on  which  to  erect  the  church,  and 
three  others  to  help  pay  for  the  building.  The  five 
lots,  even  amidst  the  pressure  now  prevailing  here,  are 
worth  not  less  than  $1000.  Our  building  wall  be  of 
brick,  and  will  cost  not  far  from  $5000.  A  cheaper 
house  than  this  would  be  unworthy  of  our  denomina- 
tion, in  such  a  growing  town  as  Atchison.  As  the 
Home  Missionary  Society  sometimes  assists  weak 
churches  in  erecting  their  houses  of  worship,  may  we 
not  hope  that  you  will  designate  your  contributions  to 
this  society,  to  assist  us  in  erecting  our  house  of  wor- 
ship?" 

Mr.  Challiss  greatly  rejoiced  in  this  effort  of  the 
brethren  at  Atchison,  and  through  his  solicitation  the 
Cohansey  Church  cheerfully  complied  with  their 
request,  and  neighboring  churches  also  sent  aid  to 
these  brethren. 

In  the  following  March,  the  pastor  of  this  flock 
wrote  to  Mr.  Challiss,  acknowledging  some  favors, 
and  said,  "  I  am  deeply  impressed  with  the  Christian 
and  parental  affection  which  your  letter  breathes.  I 
am  now  busy  taking  up  subscriptions  for  our  church. 
I  have  pledges  to  the  amount  of  about  $2000,  exclu- 
sive of  the  ground  on  which  to  place  our  house.  I 
shall  not  be  able  to  get  much  more  here.  Money  was 
never  so  scarce  here.     Without  going  much  in  debt,  I 

20* 


236  J^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

think  we  can  get  our  house  so  far  finished  as  to  be 
able  to  worship  in  it,  and  probably  we  may  be  able  to 
complete  it  in  the  fall. 

"You  have  no  idea  of  the  difficulty  of  getting  up  a 
religious  interest  in  a  community  of  strangers  such  as 
ours  is.  So  many  have  come  here  in  the  hot  pursuit 
of  a  fortune,  and  then  there  is  a  great  lack  of  sympa- 
thy here  to  unite  together  the  individual  members  of  a 
cono-reeration.  But  I  am  not  discouraged.  Please 
inform  me  what  you  think  you  will  be  able  to  raise 
for  our  house.  We  are  under  great  obligations  to  you 
for  your  assistance.  If  your  people  could  only  realize 
our  situation,  I  know  they  would  contribute  liberally. 

"  Your  son  George  and  his  wife  have  become  regu- 
lar attendants  on  preaching,  and  I  have  reason  to 
believe  Luther  will,  when  we  get  into  our  new  house. 
How  glad  I  should  be  for  you  to  pay  us  a  visit  this 
summer  and  preach  for  us.  Are  you  not  going  to 
visit  your  children  here?  It  is  not  the/ar  West  now, 
only  four  days  from  you. 

"Mr.  Luther  C.  Challiss  has  just  presented  to  our 
church  a  small,  but  excellent  organ." 

In  July  following,  the  pastor  and  clerk  of  this  little 
church  wrote  to  the  Cohansey  Church,  acknowledging 
their  generous  contribution  and  thanking  them  for 
their  kind  remembrance,  and  then  added — "The 
walls  of  our  house  are  now  going  up,  and  in  six  weeks 


REV.  JAMES  M.   GHALLISS.  237 

we  expect  to  remove  our  services  from  a  rented  room 
into  our  own  building.  Our  house  is  thirty-five  by 
fifty-five  feet,  brick,  with  pilasters  and  tower." 

As  Mr.  Challiss  had  rejoiced  over  the  commence- 
ment of  this  enterprise,  so  he  now  rejoiced  the  more  in 
view  of  the  successful  completion  of  the  work.  He 
had  given  this  little  church  a  warm  place  in  his  heart, 
and  had  prayed  and  labored  that  success  might  attend 
their  efforts.  He  had  felt  it  a  privilege  to  aid  them, 
and  was  especially  thankful  that  one  son  was  an  active 
member  of  this  household  of  faith,  and  that  other  sons 
were  so  much  interested  in  its  prosperity.  He  rejoiced 
as  a  Christian  man  and  as  a  Christian  father. 

For  some  years  Mr.  Challiss  had  greatly  desired  to 
visit  his  children  in  the  West.  He  had  long  had  this 
visit  in  actual  contemplation,  but  was  unwilling  to  be 
absent  from  his  post  as  pastor  for  so  long  a  time  as  he 
wished  to  spend  with  them.  But  the  desire  of  this 
visit  had  grown  by  the  delay ;  and  now  that  all  his 
sons  and  their  families  were  in  the  West,  and  residing 
in  the  same  city,  and  that  he  was  free  from  pastoral 
responsibility,  he  resolved  to  gratify  this  long  cher- 
ished desire.  We  find  among  his  papers  some  refer- 
ence to  this  visit  to  his  children  and  to  the  impressions 
received  while  on  this,  his  first  visit  to  the  great 
West. 

"May  15,  1860.     I  leave  home  this  day  for  Cin- 


238  REV.  JAMES  M.   CBALLISS. 

cinnati,  and  from  there,  the  Lord  willing,  I  shall 
pursue  my  journey  to  see  my  sons  in  Atchison,  Kansas 
Territory. 

''June  9th.  Here  I  am  in  the  great  West,  far 
from  little  New  Jersey,  and  many,  very  many  dear 
friends  I  have  left  there.  My  first  stopping-place  in 
the  valley  of  the  West  was  the  flourishing  city  of 
Cincinnati,  where  I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting,  by 
appointment,  the  National  Anniversary  of  the  Baptist 
denomination.  It  was  a  season  of  much  interest, 
showing  heartfelt  earnestness  in  the  great  work  of 
home  and  foreign  missions.  From  this  city  I  started 
f)r  St.  Louis  where  I  found  another  large  city,  having 
every  appearance  of  great  thrift  and  enterprise,  with 
teeming  multitudes  hotly  pursuing  after  wealth. 
After  tarrying  here  for  a  day,  I  left  for  St.  Joseph,  on 
the  Missouri  River.  Here  I  remained  over  the 
Lord's  Hay,  and  had  the  pleasure  to  meet  with  the 
church  in  this  place,  and  preach  unto  them  'Jesus.' 
On  Monday  I  had  the  great  joy  of  meeting  my  two 
long  absent  sons,  AVilliam  and  Luther,  coming  to  wel- 
come me  to  their  home  in  this  distant  country.  We 
reached  Atchison  the  following  night,  where  I  found 
the  families  of  my  sons  waiting  to  greet  me,  and  re- 
joiced to  see  their  aged  father.  I  was  truly  thankful 
to  see  arain  these  loved  ones,  from  whom  I   had  been 


REV.  JAMES  M.  CHALLISS.  239 

SO  long  separated,  and  to  find  them  well  and   in  cir- 
cumstances of  so  great  favor. 

"The  city  of  Atchison  is  a  young  but  thriving  town 
on  the  Missouri  river.  It  is  not  yet  six  years  since 
the  first  store  was  erected  here,  and  now  there  are 
about  five  thousand  inhabitants  in  the  place.  The 
Baptists  have  secured  a  fine  start  in  this  community. 
They  have  a  substantial  brick  edifice,  with  steeple  and 
bell,  inviting  the  passers-by  to  come  in  and  worship 
the  God  of  their  fathers.  Less  than  two  years  ago, 
they  were  organized  with  nine  members,  with  no  place 
of  worship  and  no  permanent  congregation;  now  they 
count  forty  members  and  have  a  crowded  assembly  of 
attentive  hearers.  Their  place  of  worship  is  the  best 
in  the  town,  and  the  best  of  our  denomination  in  the 
territory.  This  good  work  has  been  accomplished 
with  the  special  blessing  of  God,  by  the  faithful  and 
energetic  labors  of  Rev.  L.  A.  Alderson,  from  Vir- 
ginia, who  moved  here  with  his  family,  and  began  at 
once  to  hunt  up  the  few  scattered  Baptists.  He  is 
'worthy  of  double  honor,'  not  only  because  he  labored 
in  word  and  doctrine,  but  because  in  their  great  weak- 
ness he  has  'worked  for  nothing  and  found  himself.' 

"For  the  three  days  past  I  have  had  the  pleasure  to 
meet  with  the  first  Kansas  Baptist  Convention  for  re- 
ligious purposes.  It  was  a  noble  gathering  of  faithful 
pioneers   from   almost   every   part   of  the   Territory. 


240  REV.  JA3IES  M.    CHALLISS. 

There  were  eighteen  ministers  and  fifteen  other  dele- 
gates, sturdy,  faithful  men,  some  coming  fifty  and 
some  a  hundred  miles  on  horseback  to  meet  their 
brethren  in  this  Convention.  It  was  my  privilege  to 
preach  the  introductory  sermon  before  this  body.  It 
was  heart-cheering  to  hear  these  laborers  speak  of 
their  extensive  fields  of  labor,  'now  white,  ready  to 
the  harvest.'  A  wide  and  effectual  door  is  opened 
and  'there  is  much  land  to  be  possessed.'  Oh,  that 
there  were  more  praying  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  to 
send  more  laborers  into  the  harvest!  Here  is  a  most 
invitino;  field  for  the  ministers  of  Jesus  burning-  with 
zeal  for  souls.  Oh,  that  this  great  land  may  soon  be 
Immanuel's  land!" 

After  spending  more  than  a  mouth  in  Kansas,  Mr. 
Challiss  returned  East  by  steamer  to  St.  Louis,  and 
thence  through  Chicago,  stopping  occasionally  with 
friends  by  the  way,  and  reaching  home  early  in  July. 

This  trip  West  gave  him  grander  views  of  the 
greatness  and  importance  of  the  new  states  and  terri- 
tories than  he  had  ever  gained  before,  awakened  a 
deeper  sympathy  in  the  struggles  of  frontier  life,  and 
gave  him  a  fuller  appreciation  of  the  important  work 
of  our  Home  Mission  Society. 

A  few  months  after  this  visit,  when  the  southern 
and  south-western  portions  of  Kansas  were  laid  waste 
by  terrible   drought,  we  find  Mr.   Challiss  in  corres- 


RF.V.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  241 

ponclence  with  the  relief  committee  at  Atchison,  and 
earnestly  stirring  up  the  people  of  the  East  to  hasten 
their  aid  to  that  famishing  people.  The  aid  he  ten- 
dered the  suffering  people  of  Kansas,  the  encourage- 
ment he  gave  in  establishing  the  church  at  Atchison, 
and  the  happy  religious  influence  of  his  visit  there 
were  gratefully  acknowledged,  and  some  pleasing  re- 
collections of  that  visit  are  still  fondly  cherished. 

Gen.  S.  C.  Pomeroy,  now  United  States  senator 
from  Kansas,  thus  addressed  him  by  letter. 

"Dear  Sir: — Inclosed  you  will  please  find  a  re- 
ceipt for  the  amount  sent  to  the  relief  of  our  poor. 
What  obligations  are  we  under  for  the  generositv  of 
our  friends  in  the  States!  I  am  sure  I  love  mankind 
better  since  seeing  this  general  uprising  of  the  people 
for  our  relief,  and  I  assure  you  there  is  need  enough 
of  it.  .  .  .  Such  efforts  and  contributions  as  you 
have  just  sent  enable  us  to  'make  the  widow's  heart  to 
leap  for  joy.'  And  the  'blessing  of  many  ready  to 
perish '  will  rest  upon  you." 

Rev.  L.  A.  Alderson,  of  Atchison,  says,  "My  first 
visit  to  this  part  of  the  West  was  in  the  fall  of  1858. 
I  then  found  three  sons  of  Brother  Challiss  residing  in 
this  city,  and  it  was  this  circumstance  mainly  that  in- 
duced me  to  locate  here,  having  in  view  the  building 
up  of  a  Baptist  church  in  a  field  entirely  new. 
During   the   year    1859,  we   sucxjeeded  in    erecting  a 


242  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

good  and  substantial  house  of  worship — for  several 
years  the  only  church  building  owned  by  the  Baptists 
in  Kansas.  It  was  in  the  midst  of  many  difficulties 
that  this  house  of  worship  was  completed.  The  Rev. 
J.  M.  Challiss  took  a  lively  interest  in  this  enterprise, 
and  gave  us  much  encouragement.  I  now  have  be- 
fore me  a  letter  of  encouragement  in  which  he  gives  a 
statement  of  the  amount  he  had  been  instrumental  in 
collecting  for  our  house  in  the  Salem,  Bridgeton, 
Greenwich,  and  Cohansey  churches. 

"In  the  spring  of  1860  he  visited  our  city,  and  re- 
mained some  six  weeks,  preaching  every  Lord's  Day 
in  our  new  house  of  worship  to  deeply  interested  con- 
gregations. The  evening  after  his  arrival  here  was 
the  time  of  our  weekly  evening  prayer  meeting.  As 
he  approached  near  the  house  of  worship  he  quickened 
his  steps,  and  as  he  entered  the  door,  he  exclaimed, 
'  Bless  the  Lord  that  my  feet  have  been  permitted  to 
tread  the  steps  of  this  dear  house.'  He  conducted  the 
services  of  the  evening.  By  his  request  I  read  Acts 
12,  and  I  was  forcibly  impressed  with  his  remarks  on 
this  chapter.  They  were  plain,  impressive,  and  withal 
endued  with  that  holy  unction  which  showed  that  he 
held  intimate  communion  with  God. 

"  During  his  stay  with  us,  ministers  and  delegates 
from  the  Baptist  churches  in  Kansas  convened  with 
us   to    organize    'The    Baptist   State    Convention    of 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS  243 

Kansas.'  The  counsel  of  our  brother,  together  witli 
the  loveliness  of  his  spirit,  exerted  a  happy  influence 
upon  the  brethren  of  the  convention." 

His  daughter-in-law,  writing  in  reference  to  this 
visit,  says.  "  How  often  during  the  convention  lately 
held  here,  have  I  thought  of  Pa.  At  the  time  when 
the  convention  was  held  here  before  he  was  with  us 
and  deeply  interested  in  everything  relating  to  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  our  State.  One  of  the  delegates 
here  at  that  time  was  an  Indian,  *  Ottowa  Jones.'  Pa 
regarded  him  with  wonder  and  interest.  As  he  was 
only  one,  we  made  up  a  family  party  and  went  out  to 
the  'Reservation'  to  seethe  Kickapoo  tribe  of  Indians. 
We  were  all  full  of  curiosity  to  see  them  and  their 
manner  of  living.  After  looking  around  we  went 
into  their  wigAvams  to  see  the  squaws  and  their  babies. 
Pa  remained  inside  but  a  few  moments,  and  on 
inquiry  we  found  he  could  not  enjoy  looking  at  them, 
because  they  were  '  such  poor  dirty  toads.' 

"  While  traveling,  we  remained  over  night  with  a 
family  of  much  taste  and  cultivation  from  the  East. 
Although  so  far  west,  and  living  in  a  cabin  of  logs, 
they  were  surrounded  with  articles  of  taste  and  beauty. 
Being  fine  musicians  they  entertained  us  with  music 
and  singing.  But  Pa,  though  fond  of  singing,  went 
off'  and  did  not  seem  to  enjoy  it.  I  wondered  at  this 
and  asked  him  why?  He  replied,  'Oh,  Mary,  how 
2\ 


244  HEV.  JAMES  M    CHALLISS. 

could  I  enjoy  it,  in  a  prayerless  household — that  large 
library  of  books  contained  not  one  Bible  or  religious 
work, — nothing  but  chaff.' 

"  Our  route  lay  across  the  beautiful  prairies  of 
Kansas,  here  and  there  interspersed  with  streams  and 
belts  of  timber.  He  was  forcibly  struck  with  their 
extent  and  beauty,  and  in  looking  upon  these  scenes, 
now  clothed  in  all  the  loveliness  of  early  summer,  he 
would  often  exclaim,  '  Behold  the  handywork  of 
God.'  He  regarded  this  whole  country  as  specially 
inviting  to  missionary  labors  and  j)romising  ample 
harvest." 

Soon  after  his  return  from  Kansas  we  find  him 
engaged  as  the  stated  supply  of  the  little  church  at 
Millville,  ten  miles  distance  from  his  residence.  In 
referring  to  this  engagement,  he  says,  "  The  church 
at  Millville,  being  in  a  destitute  condition,  entreated 
me  to  supply  their  pulpit  on  the  Lord's  Day.  To 
this  request  I  consented,  and  continued  to  preach  for 
them  until  they  were  favored  with  a  pastor." 

This  church  in  their  letter  to  the  Association  of 
1860,  refer  to  the  sickness  of  their  pastor,  who  was 
finally  compelled  to  leave  the  field,  and  then  add, 
that  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  had  been  laboring  with 
them. 

In  their  letter  of  the  next  year,  after  referring  to 
their  long  struggles   and   continued   discouragements 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  245 

and  feebleness,  they  say :  "  We  have  reason  to  be 
thankful  for  the  mercies  of  the  past  year.  By  our  re- 
quest, and  that  of  the  Board  of  Missions,  our  pul[)it 
has  been  regularly  supplied  by  Bro.  J.  M.  Challiss,  of 
Bridgeton,  whose  labors  have  not  been  in  vain.  We 
expect  this  arrangement  will  continue,  unless  we  can 
find  some  young  man,  of  acceptable  talents  and  piety, 
who  will  be  willing  to  settle  with  us  as  pastor."  In 
their  letter  of  the  next  year,  1862,  they  say  :  "  We 
feel  grateful  to  God  that  in  his  kind  providence  we 
have  had  the  regular  and  faithful  preaching  of  his 
word.  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  supplied  us  during  the 
first  six  months  of  the  year." 

Mr.  Challiss  did  not  engage  in  this  work  with  very 
sanguine  views,  as  will  be  seen  from  the  following 
reference  to  this  field,  written  about  the  time  he  com- 
menced his  labors  there.  "  For  many  years  this  has 
been  a  feeble  vine.  Early  planted  at  Port  Elizabeth 
and  afterwards  transplanted  at  Millville,  but  still  its 
strength  is  comparative  weakness.  Indeed,  it  does 
seem  as  though  the  soil,  just  in  this  section,  was  too 
sandy  and  dry  to  raise  very  many  good  Baptists.  The 
field  has  been  cultivated  by  many  different  laborers, 
but  the  seed  has  too  often  fallen  among  thorns  and  on 
loose,  sandy  soil,  and  produced  but  little  fruit." 

He  was  accustomed  to  go  over  to  Millville  on  Satur- 
day, preach  twice  on  Sunday,  and  return  on  Monday. 


246  ^^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Occasionally  he  would  go  on  Friday,  and  frequently 
remained  over  Monday,  to  do  what  pastoral  work  he 
could,  and  to  look  after  the  general  interests  of  the 
church.  After  laboring  here  about  a  year  his  expres- 
sions in  reference  to  the  field  were  more  hopeful,  yet 
sufficiently  guarded  to  restrain  too  sanguine  expecta- 
tions. "  Things  appear  to  be  brightening  in  the  little 
church  at  Millville.  Yesterday  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
receiving  jive  additional  members  to  their  number, 
one  by  baptism,  two  by  experience,  and  two  by  let- 
ter. We  greatly  hope  they  will  prove  a  real  help  to 
the  church. 

"  My  knowledge  of  the  brethren  here,  by  familiar 
intercourse  with  them,  has  convinced  me  that  there  are 
some  both  good  and  bad  in  this  church,  and  that  the 
way  seems  now  prepared  in  a  measure  for  the  settle- 
ment of  a  missionary  pastor  with  them." 

During  the  following  years  he  supplied  the  pulpit 
of  the  Cedarville  and  Canton  churches  for  some  time, 
and  also  preached  at  Vineland,  as  we  learn  from  his 
own  record.  "Some  time  after  closing  my  labor  with 
the  Millville  Church  the  church  at  Cedarville  sent  for 
me  to  be  their  Lord's  Day  supply.  To  this  I  consented 
and  continued  in  that  work  until  the  church  secured 
the  services  of  Rev.  E.  M.  Barker,  who  settled  with 
them  in  October,  1863. 

"  After  this  the  church  at  Canton,  being  destitute 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  247 

wished  me  to  supply  them,  which  I  did,  until  they  ob- 
tained Rev.  W.  C.  Corn  well  as  their  pastor. 

"  A  new  field  for  mission  labors  opening  in  that 
flourishing  section  of  our  county,  Vineland,  I  was 
soon  invited  to  come  over  to  that  Macedonia  and  help 
them.  I  commenced  preaching  there  in  April,  1865. 
We  very  soon  found,  by  opening  a  place  of  worshi}), 
that  there  was  an  encouraging  number  of  Baptists  lo- 
cated there  from  different  states  in  the  Union.  In  a 
very  remarkable  manner  these  brethren  soon  became 
acquainted  with  each  other  and  learned  to  love  and 
work  together  as  brethren.  In  a  few  weeks  they  were 
convinced  of  the  importance  of  forming  themselves 
into  a  regular  gospel  church.  This  important  end 
was  accomplished  in  about  eight  weeks  from  the  time 
I  commenced  preaching  there.  In  less  than  three 
months  we  had  a  church  constituted  and  a  good  con- 
gregation gathered.  God  signally  owned  the  word 
for  good." 

His  work  at  Vineland  deserves  a  fuller  notice  than 
this  general  account  from  his  own  pen.  Vineland 
grew  up  rapidly,  like  some  of  our  Western  towns,  at 
great  centres  of  travel  or  trade,  where  the  prospective 
development  of  a  rich  surrounding  country,  or  special 
advantages  of  location  hasten  the  concentration  of  cap- 
ital and  give  unusual  growth.  But  Vineland  grew 
up  in  the  old  state  of  New  Jersey,  in  a  section  by  no 

1^1* 


248  ^^^-  J-AMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

means  inviting  to  agriculturists,  and  without  any 
present  or  prospective  special  advantages  of  location  as 
a  business  centre.  For  its  growth  it  was  mainly  de- 
pendent upon  the  indomitable  energy  and  persever- 
ance of  one  man,  who  purchased  a  large  tract  of  land 
and  determined  to  found  a  rural  city,  to  be  surrounded 
with  fruit  gardens  and  farms  of  the  best  cultui'e. 

It  is  a  compliment  to  the  energy  of  the  founder  of 
this  town,  that  with  the  disadvantages  against  him  he 
succeeded  at  all.  By  extended  advertising,  attention 
was  called  to  this  place,  and  persons  came  in  from  all 
parts  of  the  country.  The  town  grew  to  command  at- 
tention and  respect,  despite  its  want  of  natural  advan- 
tages and  the  many  prophecies  of  "  sure  failure." 

The  Yineland  Baptist  Church,  in  their  first  letter 
to  the  West  New  Jersey  Association,  September,  1865, 
thus  refers  to  their  own  origin  :  "  In  the  over-ruling 
providence  of  God,  the  community  of  Vineland  has, 
within  four  years,  become  an  enterprising  people. 
A  goodly  number  of  Baptists  gathered  there  from  dif- 
ferent states.  Several  attempts  were  made  to  get  these 
brethren  to  come  together  for  social  worship,  but  for 
a  time  all  failed.  In  April  last,  several  brethren 
came  over  from  Bridgeton  to  inquire  after  our  pros- 
pects. Having  no  one  to  preach  for  us  or  any  means 
of  calling  the  Baptists  together,  after  consultation. 
Brother  J.  M.  Challiss  was  earnestly  solicited  to  come 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  249 

over  and  help  us  by  raising  the  standard  of  the  cross 
in  our  midst. 

"  He  came,  and  as  soon  as  it  was  known  that  we  had 
Baptist  preaching,  the  brethren  came  together,  and, 
though  strangers  to  each  otlier,  they  soon  learned  to 
love  as  brethren.  After  having  regular  preaching  for 
about  six  weeks,  the  propriety  of  forming  a  Baptist 
church  became  very  apparent.  Things  were  put  in 
order  to  this  end ;  soon  these  brethren  organized 
a  regular  Baptist  church,  and  were  so  recognized  by 
a  council  held  June  15th,  1865.  We  feel  thankful  to 
the  Head  of  the  church  and  indebted  to  Brother  Clial- 
liss  for  our  present  prospects." 

The  next  year  their  letter  said  :  "  We  have  been 
supplied,  most  of  the  time  during  the  year,  with 
preaching,  and  shall  ever  feel  grateful  to  our  brother. 
Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  for  his  very  acceptable  labors 
among  us." 

Mr.  Challiss  was  regarded  by  this  people,  as  father 
of  their  organization,  and  they  esteemed  him  with  fil- 
ial aiFection.  These  expressions,  and  many  more  like 
them,  heard  from  this  people,  show  their  apprecia- 
tion of  his  worth,  and  his  work  among  them.  "  We 
all  felt  that  he  was  a  good  man."  "  He  exerted 
a  good  influence  over  our  people,  and  was  uni- 
versally respected."  "  The  church  owes  its  origin,  in- 
strumentally,  to  him."      "He  was  a  good  and  faithful 


250  f^f^V-  J-'i'VES  M.   CIIALLFSS. 

minister  of  Christ,  and  we  are  greatly  indebted  to  him. 
for  our  present  position."  "  He  was  like  a  father  to 
us.  We  all  loved  him,  and  could  not  but  love  him." 
One  good  old  Christian  man  said :  "  I  had  doubted 
the  propriety  of  organizing  a  Ba[)tist  church  here,  and 
was  assisting  our  Presbyterian  friends  a  little,  and 
feeling  quite  at  home  among  them.  But  he  labored 
faithfully  with  me  in  regard  to  my  duty  to  join  with 
my  own  brethren  in  organizing  a  Baptist  interest.  I 
was  out  one  morning,  and  he  hit  me  hard,  as  he  urged 
the  need  of  every  Baptist  being  firm  and  decided, 
and  deprecated  that  easy  way  which  would  allow 
them  to  give  their  sympathies  and  co-operation  to 
others  when  their  own  people  had  such  claims  upon 
them.  After  sermon  we  were  all  requested  to  stay 
and  confer  together  about  the  formation  of  a  church. 
I  freely  expressed  my  doubts  and  fears  and  said : 
^  Brethren,  I  do  not  think  the  time  has  yet  come  when 
you' —  '  There,  there,  my  dear  brother',  said  this  faith- 
ful servant  of  God,  'don't  say  you,  say  we,  we'  Well 
then,  I  said  we,  and  it  has  been  we  ever  since,  and  I 
honor  the  man  who  so  honestly  chided  me." 

Mr.  Challiss  spent  some  time  among  the  churches, 
in  the  fall  of  1866,  collecting  funds  to  aid  in  building 
a  Baptist  meeting-house  in  Vineland,  and  to  awaken 
an  interest  in  behalf  of  the  little  church  there,  and  his 
earnest  sympathies  were  continued  in  their  behalf  till 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  251 

the  close  of  life.  In  September,  1869,  this  church  re- 
ported a  membership  of  two  hundred  and  three,  and 
that "  Their  house  of  worship  was  so  far  completed 
that  they  have  occupied  it,  and  were  looking  forward, 
with  the  blessing  of  God,  to  a  career  of  greater  useful- 
ness." 

In  the  spring  of  1867,  he  was  invited  to  supply  the 
pulpit  of  the  Mount  Holly  Baptist  Church,  during  the 
pastor's  absence  in  Europe  and  Palestine.  He  was 
quite  surprised  that  they  should  desire  his  services. 
They  had  enjoyed,  during  the  previous  year,  an  exten- 
sive revival,  and  many  had  been  added  to  their  num- 
ber. They  had  just  entered  their  enlarged  house  of 
worship,  and  had  a  large  congregation,  a  majority  of 
whom  were  young  people.  He  said,  "It  is  not 
strange  that  the  pastor,  after  so  long  a  series  of  exces- 
sive labors  and  anxiety,  should  need  the  rest  of  some 
months,  and  that  the  church  should  desire  a  perina- 
nent  supply,  but  why  they  should  fix  upon  me,  I  can- 
not understand.  Why,  I  have  grown  old  and  am  so 
near  worn  out  that  I  am  not  fitted  for  the  work." 
He  hesitated  for  a  time.  He  dreaded  the  fatigue  of 
travel  and  absence  from  his  home  which  would  be 
necessary.  He  questioned  the  propriety  of  leaving  his 
companion  alone,  so  much  as  his  engagement  would 
require  him  to  do.  And  then  he  remembered  that  it 
had  been  his  rule  through  life  never  to  allow  personal 


252  ^EV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS. 

comforts  to  interfere  with  duty,  and  so  he  finally 
wrote.  "  I  have  talked  with  my  companion  about  the 
matter  of  becoming  your  permanent  supply  during  the 
absence  of  your  pastor,  and  I  am  now  prepared  to 
assent  to  your  proposition,  unless  you  can  find  some 
one  to  live  in  your  town  during  the  brief  period. 
One  thing  is  very  certain,  that  transient  supplies  will 
not  be  for  the  good  of  the  church  and  congregation. 
If  it  is  the  wish  of  the  brethren  I  will  tarry  a  day  or 
two  each  week  to  visit  the  sick  or  attend  to  any  other 
pastoral  duties." 

In  referring  to  this  service,  he  said,  "  I  commenced 
laboring  for  them  in  May,  and  continued  in  this  plea- 
sant and  important  service  for  five  months.  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  knowing  that  my  preaching  was  blessed  to 
the  upbuilding  of  Zion  and  the  benefit  of  souls. 
I  became  quite  attached  to  the  people  and  I  had 
reason  to  believe  they  felt  attached  to  me." 

The  evidence  of  their  appreciation  of  his  services  is 
not  wantino;.  In  the  letter  of  the  church  to  the  Asso- 
ciation,  September,  1867,  after  referring  to  their  pas- 
tor, still  absent,  they  add,  "  During  the  absence  of  our 
pastor,  we  have  enjoyed  the  labors,  in  word,  and  doc- 
trine, of  that  venerable  servant  of  God,  Rev.  J.  M. 
Challiss.  He  preaches  the  word  with  energy  and 
power,  and  with  evident  acceptance,  as  shown  by  the 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLfSS.  253 

large  and  attentive  congregation  attending  upon  his 
ministry." 

The  Rev.  A.  G.  Thomas,  pastor  of  the  church  at 
that  time,  thus  adds  his  testimony.  "  I  was  glad  to 
hear,  after  leaving  home,  that  the  services  of  so  good 
a  man  had  been  secured.  He  entered  at  once  into  the 
work  with  the  devotion  that  had  characterized  all  his 
previous  labors.  His  ripe  experience  as  a  pastor,  and 
his  tender  and  faithful  preaching  were  of  much  profit 
to  the  people.  They  called  his  pulpit  services  '  The 
good  old-fashioned  gospel  preaching.'  The  congrega- 
tions were  well  sustained,  and  I  found  the  church,  on 
my  return,  in  a  good  working  condition.  I  believe 
that  the  last  pastoral  labors  of  Brother  Challiss  were 
among  the  people  of  Mount  Holly,  during  these  five 
months  of  my  absence.  Had  he  then  known  them  to 
be  his  last,  he  could  not  have  been  more  faithful  and 
conscientious  in  his  work.  Many  thus  endeared  to 
him  were  saddened  to  hear  of  his  death." 

His  experience  during  this  season  of  labor  at  Mount 
Holly,  was  a  green  spot  in  the  last  stage  of  his  life 
pilgrimage,  where  his  spirit  was  refreshed  and 
strengthened  and  his  loins  re-girded,  to  pursue  more 
joyfully  that  last  part  of  the  journey,  when  often, 
weariness  grows  into  constant  fatigue  and  faintness, 
and  burdened,  slowly  wasting  nature  asks  for  earlier 


254  ^^'^'-  J^AMES  31.   CEALLISS. 

rest  than  the  good  of  the  pilgrim  or  the  wisdom  of 
God  can  grant. 

At  the  Association  in  1867,  held  at  Jacobstown, 
amid  the  scenes  of  the  early  pastoral  struggles  of  Mr. 
Chalh'ss,  and  where  he  had  witnessed  some  of  the  first 
triumphs  of  grace  in  his  ministiy,  his  heart  was  full  of 
tender  recollections  and  joyful  trust, 

He  walked  around  the  "  Old  Grave  Yard  "  where 
the  dust  of  most  of  those  with  whom  he  had  been 
associated  in  this  church  nearly  a  half  century  before, 
was  quietly  sleeping.  He  remembered  that  forty-five 
years  had  passed  since  he  first  met  with  the  brethren 
of  this  Association,  and  that  nearly  ever^^  one  who 
greeted  him  then,  had  gone  to  his  reward.  He 
thought  of  himself  as  an  old  man,  and  felt  like  one 
left  almost  alone,  yet  not  alone;  Jesus  was  with  him. 
His  words  were  full  of  tenderness,  pathos,  and  assu- 
rance of  faith,  as  he  referred  to  these  things  of  the 
past,  and  gave  utterance  to  his  strong  convictions  that 
he  was  nearing  his  heavenly  home ;  and  that  he  was 
with  his  brethren  in  the  Association  for  the  last  time. 
And  so  it  proved. 

A  few  weeks  after  this,  he  visited  for  the  last  time, 
his  friends  at  Lower  Dublin,  spending  several  days 
with  them ;  meeting  them  once  more  in  their  ancient 
house  of  worship  on  the  Lord's  Day,  and  preaching  to 
them  with   the  same  earnestness  and  fervor  that  had 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  255 

characterized  his  eiforts  when  he  became  their  pastor 
nearly  thirty  years  before. 

In  the  last  week  of  October,  he  attended  the  meet- 
ing of  the  New  Jersey  Baptist  State  Convention,  held 
at  Camden.  Thirty-seven  years  had  passed  since  he 
assisted  in  organizing  this  convention,  and  all  but  five 
of  the  constituent  members  were  now  dead.  He  felt 
admonished  by  that  fact,  to  "  be  also  ready."  He  had 
always  manifested  great  interest  in  the  work  of  the 
convention,  and  maintained  intimate  relations  with  its 
active  workers.  He  very  much  enjoyed  this  session 
and  the  intercourse  it  afforded  him  with  his  brethren 
in  the  ministry.  During  the  eight  years  that  he  was 
out  of  the  pastorate,  he  had  continued  to  attend  the 
public  gatherings  of  his  brethren,  just  as  though  he 
were  still  a  pastor,  and  to  manifest  the  same  interest  in 
all  their  work.  Thus  he  kept  his  heart  in  warm  sym- 
pathy with  his  brethren  and  all  their  efforts  for  the 
prosperity  of  the  churches  and  the  extension  of  the 
Redeemer's  kingdom. 

After  this  meeting  he  went  to  Upper  Freehold,  to 
assist  the  pastor  there  in  special  meetings.  To  this 
last  visit  with  the  people  of  his  first  pastoral  charge, 
reference  has  already  been  made. 

He  returned  home  early  in  December,  feeling  that 
he  must  decline  all  requests  to  leave  home  during  the 
rest  of  the  winter.     But  on  reaching  home  he  found  a 


256  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

letter  from  E.ev.  J.  Thorn,  pastor  of  the  Vincentown 
Church,  requesting  his  assistance  in  some  extra  meet- 
ings to  be  held  there.  To  this  he  replied  that  he  was 
glad  his  Vincentown  friends  had  not  forgotten  him, 
and  that  he  would  be  glad  to  help  the  pastor,  but 
pleaded  the  infirmities  of  age,  and  that  Mrs.  Challiss 
would  be  alone,  if  he  should  go,  and  upon  the  whole 
he  must  decide  that  duty  required  him  to  remain  at 
home.  He  went  to  prayer  meeting  that  evening,  and 
on  returning  home  he  seemed  restless  and  disturbed  in 
mind.  He  said  he  was  afraid  he  had  consulted  his 
own  comfort  too  much  in  declining  to  go  to  Vincen- 
town. Two  days  after  writing  the  first  letter,  another 
was  written,  in  which  he  declared  that  he  had  no 
peace  of  mind  after  writing  the  former  letter.  He 
knew  if  he  had  not  been  needed,  they  would  not  have 
sent  for  him,  and  that  he  would  be  as  well  cared  for 
there  as  at  home,  and  he  now  felt  it  was  the  Lord's 
will  that  he  should  go.  His  wife  had  cheerfully 
urged  him  to  go,  and  the  path  of  duty  was  now  clear. 
The  pastor  of  that  church,  thus  refers  to  that  visit. 
"  He  came  and  spent  two  Sundays  and  the  intervening 
week  with  us.  His  soul,  as  in  his  early  days,  seemed 
to  be  absorbed  in  the  work.  I  heard  him  preach 
when  I  was  a  boy,  and  I  did  not  see  much  difference 
in  his  preaching.  Of  course  there  was  some.  He 
was  not  quite  so  vigorous,  and  his  eye  was  somewhat 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIAL/JSS.  257 

faded,  but  when  he  was  fully  aroused,  there  was  more 
fire  and  energy  than  is  usually  found  in  many  of  our 
young  preachers  of  the  present  day.  His  whole  beai*- 
ing  seemed  to  indicate  that  he  felt  he  must  give  an 
account  of  souls  to  God.  I  shall  never  forget  the 
kind  words  of  sympathy  he  gave  to  me.  After  the 
baptism  I  wrote  him  the  particulars." 

In  his  reply  to  this  letter,  under  date  of  February 
7th,  1868,  he  said:  "Be  assured  that  my  heart 
rejoiced  to  hear  such  good  news  from  the  church  of 
dear  old  Vincentown.  I  have  thought  much  and 
prayed  much  about  those  friends  who  said  to  the 
church,  '  Pray  for  me.'  I  rejoiced  to  learn  that  they 
have  now  come  out  on  the  Lord's  side,  and  others  with 
them.  May  the  Lord  bless  them,  and  '  Keep  them 
by  his  power,  through  faith  unto  eternal  salvation.'  I 
thank  God  that  my  feeble  labors  '  Were  not  in  vain  in 
the  Lord.'     May  the  Lord  bless  you  all." 

Mr.  Challiss  remained  at  home  after  this  visit  to 
Vincentown,  and  it  was  evident  that  his  health  was 
gradually  and  surely  failing. 

We  have  now  reached  a  time  in  our  narrative 
where  the  shadows  are  rapidly  lengthening,  and  when 
clearer  indications  that  the  night  is  hastening  on  de- 
mand our  reluctant  consent. 

We  pause  here  in  the  narration  of  events  as  they 
occurred  in  the  order  of  time,  that  we  may  gather  up 


258  RE^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

some  general  estimates  of  character  as  seen  in  the 
domestic  and  public  relations  which  Mr.  Challiss  sus- 
tained during  the  current  years  of  his  life.  And  we 
pause  to  do  this  here,  that  our  estimate  may  be  made 
while  he  is  still  supposed  to  be  battling  in  the  conflicts 
of  life,  and  before  the  mantle  of  the  grave,  with  which 
charity  so  beautifully  covers  the  defects  and  exhibits 
the  virtues  of  men,  is  thrown  over  him,  and  in  any 
wise  obscures  a  real  life  view. 


CHAPTER    XIII 


IN     DOMESTIC     LIFE 


rnHE  boy  foreshadowed  the  man.  As  in  youth,  Mr. 
A  Challiss  loved  his  home  and  the  society  of  liis 
mother  and  brother  and  sister,  and  was  noted  for  that 
docility  and  forbearance  which  characterize  those  of 
strong  social  and  domestic  tendencies,  and  make  them 
genial  and  lovable  in  the  home  circle;  so  in  manhood, 
there  was  no  place  so  dear  to  him  as  his  own  home, 
and  no  companionship  so  desired  as  that  of  liis  own 
family. 

But  it  is  difficult  for  one,  standing  without  the 
sacred  precincts  of  the  family  circle,  to  estimate  fairly 
and  fully  the  character  of  those  within.  It  is  only  to 
those  within  the  home-circle,  fellow-members  of  the 
same  household,  that  the  full  opportunity  is  given  to 
estimate  character  in  domestic  life.  Such  relations, 
with  years  of  experience  in  the  many  phases  of  life, — 
its  cares  and  toils,  its  hopes  and  disappointments,  its 
joys  and  sorrows, — are  necessary  to  fathom  fully  the 
deep  well-springs  of  domestic  affection. 

To  the  transient  observer,  these  fountains  are  almost 


260  RE^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLI8S. 

undiscovered ;  and  often  they  are  purposely  concealed 
from  the  gaze  of  the  outside  world,  but  they  are  all 
uncovered  to  the  dear  ones  of  the  household,  and  send 
forth  their  full,  gushing  streams  to  make  green  and 
fruitful  and  joyous  the  way  through  which  the  loved 
ones  must  journey.  Within  the  home  circle,  we 
find  the  love  which  is  purest,  the  sacrifice  which 
costs  the  most,  and  devotion  to  others  which  lias  en- 
dured the  severest  tests,  yet  these  virtues  may  be  so 
hidden  from  the  world,  that,  while  their  eifects  are 
clearly  seen  in  the  peace  and  happiness  of  the  house- 
hold, their  strength  is  not  appreciated,  and  their 
existence  hardly  recognized.  It  is  true,  that  promi- 
nent character  will  have  its  out-croppings,  and  that 
"  From  the  abundance  of  the  heart  the  mouth  spcak- 
eth."  These  out-goings  discover  to  the  inquirer  the 
quality,  and  by  inference,  something  of  the  depth  and 
fullness  of  the  fountains  whose  streams  cannot  be  hid. 
We  are  not  without  these  outer  manifestations  in 
reference  to  the  domestic  life  of  Mr.  Challiss,  Indeed 
they  are  so  marked  that  they  indicate  a  heart  over- 
flowing with  love  to  kindred  and  friends.  Guided  by 
these  manifestations,  and  aided  by  the  experience  of 
those  who  were  within  the  family  circle,  and  were  life- 
long recipients  of  his  care  and  love,  and  also  by  his 
own  language  as  found  in  many  scores  of  letters  ad- 
dressed to  the  members  of  the  family,  and  intended  for 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS.  261 

their  eyes  aloue,  we  find  sufficient  evidence  to  show 
that  he  had  a  pure  and  deep  affection  for  those  sustain- 
ing the  relation  to  him  of  wife,  and  child,  and  chil- 
dren's children.  This  love  was  evinced  by  his  con- 
stant and  earnest  eiforts  for  their  highest  good,  his 
preference  for  their  society,  and  his  cheerful  sacri- 
fices  for   their   welfare   and   comfort. 

He  had  strong  local  attachments,  and  a  natural 
shrinking  from  strange  places  and  intercourse  with 
strangers.  He  loved  the  society  of  his  fellow  Chris- 
tians, and  especially  his  brethren  in  the  ministry ;  yet 
preferred  the  limited  circle  of  chosen  and  congenial 
friends.  With  strong  habitual  trust  in  his  family  and 
tried  friends,  and  depending  greatly  on  them  for  his 
enjoyment,  he  ever  seemed  to  feel  the  force  of  Spen- 
cer's lines, — 

"  If  the  stock  of  our  bliss  is  in  stranger  hands  vested, 

The  fund,  ill  secured,  oft  in  bankruptcy  ends  ; 
But  the  heart  issues  bonds  whicli  ai'e  never  protested. 
When  drawn  on  the  firm  of — wife,  children,  and  friends." 

He  loved  his  home  and  the  quiet  and  grateful  en- 
joyment it  afforded  him  with  those  he  loved  most,  and 
rested  securely  and  joyfully  within  the  bosom  of  his 
family.  He  gave  them  a  welcome  and  warm  place  in 
his  heart,  and  he  did  not  doubt  for  a  moment  that  in 
their  hearts  he  had  the  same  warm  welcome.  But  he 
never  allowed  his  preference  for  home  to  keep  him 
away   from   official   duties.      In   the   performance   of 


262  -^-S-T".  JAMES  M.    ClIALLfSS 

these  duties  he  promptly  forsook,  for  the  time,  home 
pleasures,  and  separated  himself  from  his  family,  and 
mingled  with  strangers  in  strange  places. 

Mr.  Challiss  ever  felt  that  God  had  given  him,  for 
a  wife,  one  of  the  very  best  of  women ;  careful  and  ef- 
ficient in  her  management  of  her  household,  full  of  sym- 
pathy with  him  in  his  work  as  a  minister  of  Christ, 
and  always  co-operating  to  the  extent  of  her  opportu- 
nity. He  was  accustomed  to  speak  of  her  in  terms  of 
the  highest  commendation  ;  declaring  his  indebtedness 
to  her  for  his  comforts  and  usefulness,  and  he  ever 
gave  her  the  full  tribute  of  a  loving  heart.  Such  were 
his  feelings  of  attachmeut  and  dependence  in  his  do- 
mestic relations,  that  his  consent  to  be  separated  from 
his  companion,  even  for  a  short  time,  was  no  slight 
evidence  of  his  willingness  to  make  sacrifices  to  the 
call  of  duty ;  especially  was  this  so  in  the  later  years 
of  his  life. 

Early  in  March,  1867,  Mr.  Richard  Probasco,  his 
son-in-law,  started  with  his  family  for  their  new  home 
in  Maryland.  Though  the  distance  was  not  so  great, 
yet  the  inconvenience  of  access  and  the  slow  progress 
of  a  farmer's  moving,  made  the  journey  somewhat 
tedious  and  difficult.  Mrs.  Challiss  accompanied  the 
family,  with  the  intention  of  remaining  with  them  a 
few  weeks  to  see  them  comfortably  fixed  in  their  new 
home.     Mr.  Challiss  remained  at  home.     He  was  not 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  263 

very  well,  and  keenly  felt  the  leaving  of  his  children 
for  a  home  where  he  could  see  them  but  seldom. 
On  the  second  day  after  they  left  a  severe  storm  began 
and  continued  for  some  days.  This  greatly  increased 
Mr.  Challiss'  anxiety  about  the  family  and  also  his 
feelings  of  personal  discomfort.  He  had  always  great- 
ly enjoyed  the  companionship  of  his  wife,  and  was  ac- 
customed to  look  to  her  with  child-like  dependence  for 
many  comforts  and  cares.  As  he  advanced  in  life  this 
feeling  of  dependence  and  desire  for  her  constant 
companionship  increased  so  much  that  the  remark  was 
frequently  made,  "how  could  Mr.  Challiss  live  with- 
out his  wife."  But  his  feelings  of  loneliness,  his  love 
and  anxiety  for  the  absent  ones,  and  the  trials  of  this 
separation  can  be  best  told  by  quoting  from  letters 
written  to  Mrs.  Challiss  during  her  absence  in  Mary- 
land. "March  14th, — To-day  my  agonizing  mind 
has  been  somewhat  relieved  by  your  letter  coming  to 
hand,  on  this  the  third  day  of  the  second  week  of  your 
absence.  My  dear  wife,  if  I  should  try,  I  could  not 
describe  my  agony  of  mind  for  one  week  past.  It 
seems  now  like  a  month  since  you  left.  The  weather 
being  so  exceedingly  stormy,  more  so  than  any  week 
through  the  whole  winter,  has  made  me  feel  much 
worse.  I  could  not  eat,  or  sleep  at  night.  The  most 
I  could  do  was  to  talk  about  you;  and  my  prayers 
night  and  day  were  ascending  to  God  for  you  and  the 


204  ^E'^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

family  so  much  exposed.  My  soul  lias  been  in  great 
trouble,  more  so  than  on  any  occasion  since  our  mar- 
riage. I  thought  of  good  old  Jacob's  language : 
'Joseph  is  not,  Simeon  is  not,  and  now  you  have  taken 
my  Lydia  away.'  It  did  seem  as  though  all  this  was 
against  me.  But  I  hope  for  better  things  yet.  I 
hope  and  pray  all  will  work  together  for  good:  but 
oh,  it  is  a  bitter  pill!  For  no  other  person  living 
would  I  consent  to  suffer  what  I  have,  but  for  dear 
Emma.  'The  bud  may  have  a  bitter  taste,  but  sweet 
will  be  the  flower.'  Oh,  that  this  may  be  true  in  this 
sad  experience !  I  beg  of  you  all,  do  let  dear  Ma 
return  and  come  home  as  soon  as  possible.  You  may 
think  this  childish;  but  you  may  think  so  if  you 
choose.  I  know  what  I  have  passed  through  better 
than  any  one  else. 

"My  heart's  desire  and  prayer  to  God  for  you 
all,  is  that  you  may  have  your  health  and  be  kept 
in  safety.  Dear  Ma,  be  careful,  be  very  careful, 
how  you  work  and  expose  yourself.  Remember  you 
are  not  as  young  as  you  were  forty  yeai-s  ago. 
You  must  not  fail  to  write  every  few  days." 

He  wrote  a^ain  on  March  21st.  This  letter  mani- 
fested  the  same  anxiety  for  Mrs.  Challiss, — her  con- 
tinued health,  urging  great  care  of  herself,  and  ex- 
pressing the  same  love. 

There  was  evidently  a  conflict  between  his  desire 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  265 

for  Mrs,  Challiss'  early  return  and  his  desire  that  Mrs. 
Probasco  should  have  the  assistance  and  pleasure  of 
her  mother's  longer  stay  with  her.  In  this  letter,  he 
said : 

"  I  do  not  want  to  say  anything  like  reflecting  on 
what  has  been  done,  but  I  think,  if  children  will  go 
to  the  four  quarters  of  the  globe,  it  is  not  the  parent's 
duty  to  follow  them  in  their  old  age.  I  have  now  no 
child  near  me,  and  my  best  earthly  friend  is  gone.  Oh, 
that  she  may  return  in  safety  !  I  thought  of  coming 
for  you,  April  2d,  but  if  that  is  too  soon  for  you,  and 
if  Emma  needs  you  a  little  longer,  you  must  write 
me." 

In  another  letter,  dated  March  28th,  he  said: 
"  I  am  a  pilgrim  and  a  sojourner  here,  without  my 
best  earthly  friend.  But  I  was  somewhat  comforted 
this  morning  by  receiving  two  letters  from  you.  To 
know  that  you  were  well  cheered  me  up  in  my  loneli- 
ness. You  are  first  in  my  thoughts  in  the  morning 
and  last  at  night.  I  fear  sometimes  that  I  love  you 
too  much.  I  cannot  do  without  you  much  longer. 
My  constant  prayer  is  for  your  safety  and  speedy 
return.  The  neighbors  laugh  at  me;  but  they  may 
laugh  in  welcome ;  never  can  I  consent  to  any  such 
absence  so  long  again." 

Surely  no  maiden  heart,  even  in  the  first  flush  of 
early  love,  could  ask  for  stronger  or  more  ardent  ex- 


266  ^^^-  J-^^IES  M.   CHALLISS. 

pressions  of  devotion  than  this  husband  gave  to  his 
companion  in  the  forty-fifth  year  of  their  married  life. 

As  a  father,  Mr.  Challiss  felt  great  solicitude  for 
all  his  children.  His  love  for  them  was  strong  and 
unabating.  He  regarded  them  as  gracious  gifts 
from  God,  and  rejoiced  that  he  was  permitted  to  see 
them  grow  up  to  maturity  and  comfortably  settle  in 
life.  The  only  child  they  ever  lost  was  a  little  boy, 
who  died  at  Lower  Dublin,  in  April,  1838.  The  day 
after  the  death  of  this  little  one,  Mr.  Challiss  wrote 
his  cousin,  "  Little  James  died  on  Friday  morning, 
and  we  bury  him  to-morrow  morning  before  service. 
The  removal  of  this  dear  little  boy  is  sensibly  felt  by 
us,  but  we  also  feel  to  say,  '  The  Lord  gave  and  the 
Lord  hath  taken  away ;  blessed  be  the  name  of  the 
Lord.'  Little  James  has  only  gone  awhile  before  us 
to  that  better  land." 

Mr.  Challiss  was  a  friend  of  education,  and  thought 
it  the  duty  of  all  parents  to  do  the  best  they  could  for 
their  children  in  this  direction.  He  greatly  desired 
that  his  own  children  should  have  the  best  advantages 
of  education  that  he  could  command,  and  freely  sacri- 
ficed his  personal  comforts  to  secure  for  them  these 
advantages.  A  son,  who  had  chosen  the  profession  of 
medicine  as  his  calling  in  life,  in  referring  to  the  cost 
of  his  education,  says,  "  These  aggregate  expenditures 
could  only  be  met  by  the  most  rigid  economy  on  the 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CUALLISS.  267 

part  of  my  kind  parents.  My  heart  wells  up  in  grati- 
tude to  my  father,  when  I  think  of  the  years  of  strug- 
gle and  privation  through  which  he  passed,  in  order 
that  I  might  be  fitted  out  for  the  campaign  of  life. 
After  I  was  duly  located  in  the  practice  of  my  profes- 
sion, he  seemed  to  take  much  comfort  and  pride  in  my 
application  and  success.  In  the  manhood  of  his  chil- 
dren, as  in  their  childhood,  he  ever  exercised  the 
parental  care  and  aifection  which  was  a  part  of  his 
very  nature.  When  we  emigrated  to  Kansas  he  gave 
us  '  God  speed,'  and  his  prayers  followed  us." 

In  the  spring  of  1843,  he  wrote  to  a  dear  old  friend 
at  Upper  Freehold,  "  As  regards  ourselves,  we  are 
highly  blessed  as  a  family.  Our  home  is  very  plea- 
sant, and  we  like  the  situation  much.  Our  son,  Wil- 
liam, is  at  college  at  Hamilton,  progressing  well  in  his 
studies.  Joseph  is  at  home  engaged  on  our  little 
farm,  and  the  other  children  are  at  school."  Ten  years 
after  this,  he  wrote  to  this  same  friend,  "  We  are  now 
left  entirely  childless,  except  that  occasionally,  Emma 
comes  home  from  boarding-school.  Joseph  is  at  Marl- 
ton,  William  at  Moorestown,  and  Luther  and  George 
in  the  far  West,  more  than  1200  miles  from  home. 
The  Lord  has  prospered  the  way  of  my  sons,  in  that 
far-distant  country  among  strangers,  in  a  very  remark- 
able manner." 

He  rejoiced   in  the  prosperity  of  his  children,  and 
23 


268  ^^T^  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS. 

frequently  spoke  to  his  personal  friends  of  their  suc- 
cesses in  business,  and  this  may  have  led  to  inferences, 
doing  injustice  to  the  heart  of  this  Christian  father. 
Sometimes  the  great  interest  which  Christian  parents 
take  in  reference  to  their  children's  temporal  pros- 
perity, and  the  frequency  with  which  they  refer  to 
these  things,  leave  the  impression  that  they  unduly 
magnify  their  temporal  good,  and  correspondingly 
undervalue  or  are  indiiferent  to  their  spiritual  good. 
This  is  doubtless  sometimes  true,  but  often  these  im- 
pressions are  false.  However  much  Mr.  Challiss 
rejoiced  in  the  temporal  prosperity  of  his  children,  his 
greatest  desire  was  for  their  spiritual  good ;  and  his 
greatest  joy,  to  have  them  united  to  Christ  and  joined 
to  the  peojjle  of  God. 

He  was  a  good  correspondent  with  his  children;  and 
whoever  would  read  the  many  letters  of  this  father  to 
his  absent  sons,  will  find  that  he  was  not  wanting  in 
his  fidelity  to  their  religious  interests.  No  child  of  his 
can  ever  plead  a  father's  neglect  or  indifference  for  any 
want  of  religious  life  in  his  own  heart. 

In  almost  every  letter  of  the  hundreds  he  M^rote  to 
his  children,  he  called  their  attention  in  some  way  to 
the  subject  of  personal  religion,  and  often  urged  it 
upon  them  with  great  earnestness  and  love.  It  would 
seem   as   though   he   desired,  if  any  of  these  letters 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS.  269 

should  be  his  hist  to  them,  that  in  his  hist  letter  he 
should  be  found  faithful  to  their  souls. 

A  few  brief  quotations  from  his  letters  are  here 
given  as  an  illustration  of  his  anxiety  and  fidelity  on 
this  subject.  In  a  letter  to  his  sons  in  the  West, 
Luther  and  George,  written  December,  1855,  he  said: 
"If  I  could  but  hope  you  were  both  Christians,  I 
Avould  not  have  half  the  trouble  of  soul  I  now  have  on 
your  behalf.  I  have  great  heaviness  and  continued 
sorrow  in  my  heart  for  my  kinsmen,  according  to  the 
flesh.  My  dear  sons,  seek  an  interest  in  Jesus,  and 
that  will  add  a  thousand  fold  to  your  present  virtues." 

A  few  weeks  after  this,  he  wrote  to  Luther,  "  This 
is  January  4th,  1856,  and  I  am  fifty-seven  years  old  ! 
How  rapidly  the  time  passes  away  !  Our  life  is  even 
as  a  vapor,  that  appeareth  for  a  little  time  and  then 
vanisheth  away  !  The  solemn  reflection  remains,  that 
time  to  us  will  soon  issue  in  eternity.  The  great  ques- 
tion then  is,  are  we  prepared  for  that  event." 

Again  he  wrote  to  Luther :  "  Your  own  best  inter- 
est lies  immediately  associated  with  true  religion.  To 
enjoy  religion  personally  is  to  secure  the  pearl  of  great 
price.  While  you  are  prospering  in  the  good  things 
of  this  life,  remember  you  have  another  life  to  live, 
either  in  perfect  happiness  in  heaven,  or  in  a  state  of 
banishment  from  God  and  the  glory  of  his  power. 
My  dear  son,  take  this  matter  into  serious  considera- 


270  REV.  JAMES  M    CHALLISS. 

tion.  Oh !  seek  the  Lord  while  he  may  be  found. 
The  natural  ties  which  bind  our  hearts  so  tenderly  to 
you,  and  your  surpassing  kindness  to  us,  make  us  feel 
a  double  interest  in  your  spiritual  welfare.  Oh,  pre- 
pare to  meet  us  in  heaven,  though  we  should  never 
meet  again  on  earth  !" 

To  this  same  son,  he  wrote  again,  in  April,  1856, 
"  Next  Sunday  is  the  time  for  the  baptism  at  Moores- 
town,  when  Mary  will  put  on  Christ  by  baptism.  I 
rejoice  at  the  happy  change  in  William's  family.  Oh, 
may  it  please  the  Lord  to  bring  all  the  dear  children 
of  our  love  to  acknowledge  the  truth  !" 

A  few  months  after  his  eldest  son  settled  in  Atchi- 
son, he  said,  in  a  letter  to  him,  "  We  were,  indeed, 
very  much  pleased  with  your  letter, — so  glad  to  find 
you  were  contented  and  doing  so  well  in  business.  It 
did  our  hearts  good,  my  son,  to  hear  you  speak  so 
kindly  of  your  minister.  Do  not  fail  to  go  to  meeting 
every  Lord's  Day  and  you  will  soon  find  pleasure  in 
going.  Do  all  in  your  power  to  encourage  Mr.  Alder- 
son  in  his  Svork  of  faith  and  labor  of  love.' 

"  We  have  lately  lost  our  dear  brother,  S.  C.  Fith- 
ian  of  Greenwich — a  mournful  loss  to  us  all.  But 
he  was  a  converted  man  and  prepared  to  die.  This, 
my  son,  is,  after  all,  the  'Pearl  of  great  price.'  Oh, 
seek  it  as  for  your  life !"  About  this  same  time,  he 
wrote  again  to  Luther,   "  I  hope  the  Baptist  church 


REV.  JAMES  M.   C'l/ALLISS.  271 

edifice  is  so  far  finished  by  this  time  that  they  can 
have  worship  in  it.  Do  not  fail  to  go  there  and  wor- 
ship with  them.  While  you  are  so  kind  as  to  jjrovide 
for  our  temporal  wants,  I  feel  a  deep  solicitude  for 
your  spiritual  welfare.  Unless  I  can  persuade  you  to 
attend  regularly  the  ministry  of  the  word,  I  have  great 
fears  that  you  will  not  be  converted,  and  unless  you 
are  converted,  you  cannot  be  saved.  Let  me  tell  you, 
with  parental  aifection,  that  the  salvation  of  your  soul 
is  the  one  thing  needful." 

On  another  occasion,  writing  to  this  same  son,  after 
referring  to  an  important  case  then  pending  in  court, 
and  expressing  his  desire  that  it  might  be  decided  in 
his  son's  favor,  he  added,  "  If  a  trial  in  an  earthly 
court  is  of  so  much  consequence,  how  much  greater  the 
loss,  if  we  should  have  the  trial  in  the  court  of  heaven 
to  fail  us  !  Oh,  dear  son,  have  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
as  your  advocate  before  the  throne  of  God  !" 

December  20,  1867,  he  wrote  to  Luther  from  Vin- 
centown,  "  I  am  here  by  the  earnest  solicitation  of  the 
church  to  help  them  in  a  meeting.  It  is  now  quite  a 
trial  for  me  to  be  from  home  so  much  in  the  winter, 
and  I  think  this  is  the  last  I  shall  go  this  season.  I 
thank  you  a  thousand  times  for  your  unequaled  kind- 
ness to  me.  May  God  bless  you,  my  dear  son,  and 
give  you  an  interest  in  his  dear  Son !" 

Nearly  two  months  later  he  wrote  to  Luther  again, 
23* 


272  RE^^-  J-^^ff^S  M.    CHALLISS. 

"  The  winter  has  been  very  severe,  but  we  have  been 
highly  favored  with  health  and  many  providential 
mercies.  I  never  can  be  sufficiently  thankful  to  you 
for  this  lovely  little  home.  We  are  very  comfortable 
in  every  respect.  I  am  now  in  my  seventieth  year, 
and  Ma  in  her  sixty-eighth.  Many  are  dying  around 
us,  and  some  very  suddenly.  We  have  a  good  hope 
of  meeting  in  heaven  when  our  work  is  done  on 
earth." 

This  was  only  about  two  months  before  his  death. 
March  13th  he  wrote  to  this  same  son,  "I  know  not 
how  to  express  my  gratitude  to  you  for  so  rich  pre- 
sents. The  Lord  bless  you  for  your  kindness  to  your 
aged  parents.  Oh,  that  I  knew  how  to  help  one  who 
has  done  so  much  for  me !  My  earnest  prayer  is,  God 
bless  and  save  your  precious  soul." 

His  letters  abounded  in  like  expression  of  anxiety 
for  the  spiritual  good  of  his  children.  He  also  sought 
to  interest  others  in  their  behalf,  and  was  especially 
grateful  for  any  such  services.  The  Rev.  E.  D.  Fen- 
dall  says,  "  He  w' as  greatly  interested  in  the  spiritual 
welfare  of  his  children,  and  the  reception  of  his  son. 
Dr.  Wm.  L.  Challiss  and  his  wife  into  the  church, 
gave  him  great  joy;  and  towards  me,  as  an  instrument 
in  the  hands  of  God  in  their  conversion,  he  felt  a 
warm  attachment." 

In  a  letter  to  an  old  friend,  written  February  14, 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  273 

1853,  he  said,  "I  have  baptized  five  kitely,  and  among 
them,  I  have  the  pleasure  to  say,  was  my  dear  daugh- 
ter, Emma.  Oh,  this  was  a  source  of  unspeakable  joy 
to  us !  I  have  now  three  of  my  children  active  mem- 
bers of  the  church  of  Christ.  This  is  a  source  of  plea- 
sure to  my  soul.  I  have  no  greater  joy  than  to  see 
my  children  walk  in  the  truth." 

Rev.  L.  A.  Alderson,  says,  "  He  felt  a  very  deep 
interest  in  the  spiritual  welfare  of  his  children 
who  resided  in  this  new  city,  where  there  were  so  few 
religious  privileges.  In  many  of  his  letters  to  us  he 
made  special  reference  to  them,  showing  conclusively 
that  they  were  subjects  of  his  daily  supplications. 
When  he  heard  that  we  had  organized  a  little  church 
here,  and  that  one  of  his  sons  and  his  wife  had  become 
members  of  it,  he  expressed  gratitude  to  God.  Subse- 
quently, on  learning  that  his  youngest  son  and  his 
wife  had  professed  faith  in  the  Saviour  and  were  bap- 
tized into  the  fellowship  of  the  church,  his  cup  of  joy 
seemed  to  overflow." 

The  interest  he  felt  in  his  children  and  his  joy  over 
their  conversion  extended  to  his  children's  children,  as 
is  seen  in  his  letters  to  them,  and  his  interest  in  their 
education  and  general  development,  and  his  anxiety 
for  their  early  conversion. 

In  fixing  upon  Bridgeton  as  their  place  of  residence 
after  retiring  from  the  pastorate,  he  was  no  doubt  im- 


274  J^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

pelled  by  his  affection  for  a  child.  Perhaps  he  would 
have  preferred  this  to  any  other  place,  but  Emma  was 
married  and  living  between  Roadstown  and  Bridge- 
ton,  about  three  miles  from  the  latter  place.  He  did 
not  think  it  best  to  remain  at  Roadstown  even  if  it 
had  been  a  desirable  place  for  their  home  in  old  age, 
and  in  speaking  of  their  removal  he  said:  "Through 
the  great  kindness  of  Luther  I  have  purchased  a  home 
in  Bridgeton.  We  could  not  leave  here  for  any  other 
place.  As  to  having  our  home  anywhere  else  than 
Bridgeton  while  our  only  child  left  in  New  Jersey  is 
living,  we  cannot  think  of  it.  It  is  a  great  trial  to  be 
separated  from  our  other  children,  now  all  in  Kansas. 
So  now  nothing  but  death  can  separate  us  from  this 
dear  child  of  our  old  age." 

When,  therefore,  his  son-in-law,  Mr.  Probasco,  pur- 
chased a  large  farm  on  the  Eastern  Shore  of  Maryland 
and  concluded  to  move  there,  Mr.  Challiss  experienced 
one  of  the  severest  trials  of  his  life,  and  coming  at  a 
time  when  he  was  least  prepared  to  endure  it.  Mrs. 
Probasco  was  the  last  born  child  and  only  daughter. 
They  had  so  fixed  their  residence  that  the  rest  of  their 
days  might  be  spent  near  her.  The  settlement  of  the 
other  children,  so  far  away,  made  the  presence  of  this 
daughter  near  their  home,  more  desired,  and  the  pri- 
vilege of  seeing  her  and  her  family  often  was  highly 
prized,  and  was  not  surrendered  without  a  great  strug- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  275 

gle.  But  it  seemed  best  that  this  change  of  residence 
should  be  made,  and  as  usual  Mr.  Challiss  consented 
to  the  sacrifice  of  his  own  pleasure  in  the  society  of  his 
children,  for  their  good;  so  he  wished  them  "God 
speed,"  and  followed  them  to  their  new  home  with  his 
counsels  and  prayers.  But  he  said,  "My  poor  old 
heart  almost  rebelled  when  I  saw  them  leave,  and 
knew  that  my  last  child  was  gone  away.  I  felt  that 
I  had  consented  to  a  terrible  loss  for  what  they  hoped 
would  be  gain  to  them.  Still  I  trust  that  it  is  all 
right  and  that  it  will  redound  to  the  glory  of  God." 

"Very  few  fathers-in-law,"  says  Mr.  Probasco, 
"have  manifested  more  deep  and  tender  interest  in  the 
welfare  of  a  son-in-law,  than  Father  Challiss  did  in 
mine.  His  solicitude  for  myself  and  family  took  the 
widest  scope — from  the  highest  interests  of  the  immor- 
tal soul  to  the  most  trivial  of  temporal  wants — at  one 
time  manifesting  itself  in  earnest  fatherly  counsels,  and 
at  another  by  deeds  of  kindness  and  gifts  of  articles, 
often  extending  to  items  of  the  smallest  family  con- 
venience and  personal  comforts,  showing  a  considera- 
tion which  often  surprised  me. 

"His  anxiety  for  the  spiritual  interests  of  my 
family,  ever  earnest,  seemed  to  be  greatly  deepened 
by  my  removal  to  Maryland,  where  our  religious  ad- 
vantages were  very  much  lessened.  He  presented  me 
with  two  volumes  of  short  practical  sermons,  with  a 


276  REV.    JAMES  M.    CHALLISS. 

request  that  I  would  collect  all  my  family  together  on 
Sunday  morning  and  read  to  them  a  sermon.  He  also 
gave  me  '  The  Cottage  Bible/  a  short  commentary  in 
two  volumes,  to  give  me  light  and  guidance  in  leading 
my  family  in  the  study  of  the  Scriptures.  He  was  in 
the  constant  habit  of  sending  papers  and  extracts  to 
the  family,  especially  to  our  little  girls,  to  encourage 
them  to  a  life  of  piety.  His  letters  were  replete  with 
appeals  to  be  careful  for  the  spiritual  training  of  our 
children,  and  sometimes  expressions  of  fear  lest  this 
should  be  neglected. 

"  He  visited  us  in  our  Maryland  home  but  once. 
Though  laboring  under  a  severe  cold  and  hoarseness, 
he  insisted  that  I  should  have  an  appointment,  so  that 
he  could  preach  the  gospel  Mown  on  the  Eastern 
Shore  of  Maryland.'  He  filled  this  api)ointment  with 
great  effort,  but  with  much  acceptance.  When  visit- 
ing us  he  took  the  lead  in  our  family  devotions  and 
his  earnest  and  faithful  appeal  at  the  throne  of  grace, 
for  the  conversion  and  divine  guidance  of  his  children 
and  grand-children  always  forcibly  impressed  my 
mind." 

The  uniform  testimony  of  the  members  of  Mr.  Chal- 
liss's  family  so  exhibits  his  heart-felt  anxiety  for  their 
temporal  and  spiritual  welfare,  his  self-denying  devo- 
tion to  their  interests,  and  the  dignity  and  joy  impart- 
ed  by  his  presence  to  the  family  circle,  as  to  give 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS.  ^'J'J 

beauty  and  force  to  his  character  as  a  Christian  hus- 
band and  father  in  all  the  relations  of  domestic  life. 

Mr.  Challiss  left  four  sons  and  one  daughter.  The 
oldest  son,  Joseph  S.  Challiss,  after  residing  in  Kansas 
nearly  two  years,  returned  to  his  former  home.  Marl- 
ton,  Burlington  County,  New  Jersey,  where  he  was 
residing  with  his  family,  wife  and  four  children,  at  the 
time  of  his  father's  death.  The  second  son.  Dr.  W. 
L.  Challiss  and  family,  wife  and  six  children,  were 
still  residing  at  Atchison,  Kansas.  The  third  son, 
Mr.  Luther  C.  Challiss,  still  unmarried,  left  Kansas  in 
1862,  and  for  years  had  been  a  resident  of  New  York 
city.  The  youngest  son,  Mr.  George  T.  Challiss,  with 
his  family,  wife  and  four  children,  still  resided  at  At- 
chison. The  only  daughter,  Mrs.  Emma  T.  Probasco, 
resided  near  Easton,  Talbot  County,  Maryland.  She 
had  two  daughters. 

Mr.  Challiss  often  expressed  his  gratitude  that  he 
lived  to  see  all  his  children  grown  up  and  settled  in 
life,  and  he  was  thankful  that  they  were  all  in  cir- 
cumstances of  so  much  favor.  Two  sons  and  the 
daughter  with  their  companions  were  members  of 
Baptist  churches.  In  this  he  greatly  rejoiced.  But 
he  earnestly  desired  and  prayed  that  all  his  children 
might  be  faithful  Christians,  and  that  as  a  family  they 
might  stand  unbroken  around  the  throne  of  God. 


CHAPTEE   XIV 


IN      PUBLIC      LIFE, 


TT  has  been  necessary  to  refer  so  often  to  the  stand- 
^  ing,  of  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  among  his  brethren  and 
before  the  public,  while  narrating  the  current  events 
of  his  life,  that  there  would  seem  but  little  need  of 
a  chapter  under  this  heading.  Yet  perhaps  it  is  due 
to  his  memory,  and  to  those  who  shall  read  this 
memoir,  to  gather  under  a  few  leading  heads  some 
facts  and  impressions  which  will  aid  in  our  estimate 
of  his  character  in  his  relations  to  public  life. 

His  preparation  for  the  work  of  the  ministry  has 
been  fully  referred  to  in  a  previous  chapter.  Com- 
pared with  the  opportunities  aiForded  candidates  for 
the  ministry  in  the  present  day,  his  were  very  limited, 
and  he  entered  upon  his  public  life  with  comparative- 
ly limited  mental  discipline. 

As  a  student,  in  preparing  for  the  current  demands 

of  the   ministry,  but  little  need  be   said.     His    first 

pastorate  called  for  so  much  outside  work,  and  kept 

him  so  constantly  upon  the  road,  that  he  could  spend 

278 


REV.  JAMES  31.   CHALLISS.  279 

but  little  time  in  his  study.  It  was  not  a  field  where 
the  pastor's  work  could  be  done  efficiently  by  a 
scholarly  occupant.  The  work  or  the  study  must  be 
neglected.  The  great  amount  of  pastoral  labor  re- 
quired on  this  field,  the  readiness  with  which  Mr. 
Challiss  attempted  to  do  it,  and  the  time  consumed  in 
doing  it  greatly  interfered  with  regular  hours  of 
study,  and  made  it  impossible  to  secure  sufficient  time 
for  preparation  for  his  pulpit  efforts. 

The  habits  thus  acquired,  at  the  commencement  of 
his  ministry,  affected  his  whole  life  as  a  student,  and 
he  was  even  disposed  to  give  the  preference  to  pastoral 
work,  perhaps  sometimes  to  the  neglect  of  the  study's 
just  claims.  But  we  are  not  to  infer  from  this  that  he 
disparaged  his  study  or  willingly  consented  to  come 
before  his  people  without  sufficient  preparation.  He 
usually  was  an  early  riser,  and  as  far  as  he  thought 
consistent  with  other  duties,  spent  the  morning  in  his 
study.  But  he  was  not  rigid  in  observing  the  time, 
how  long  or  how  often  he  should  be  there.  Having  a 
quick  perception  and  good  memory,  and  always  aim- 
ing at  what  was  practical,  the  time  he  did  spend  in 
preparation  told  to  the  best  advantage.  He  read  but 
little  for  entertainment,  and  less  for  amusement.  He 
did  not  trouble  himself  about  new  theories,  and  gave 
but  little  time  to  speculative  writings  or  learned  dis- 
([uisitions  on  nice  points  in  theology.  He  felt,  that 
24 


280  i^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

life  was  too  short  and  his  work  too  important  for  this. 
He  accepted  the  great  doctrines  and  ordinances  of 
Christianity  as  established,  and  sought  to  gather 
such  arguments  and  illustrations  as  would  enable 
him  to  present  them  practically  for  the  acceptance 
of  others. 

Among  his  favorite  authors  were  Gill,  Fuller, 
Dwight,  Newton,  Burkitt,  Burder,  and  writers  of  like 
character.  But  the  Bible  was  ever  his  great  text 
book ;  his  constant  companion,  and  ultimate  standard 
of  appeal.  These  authors  were  read  only  as  aiding 
him  to  understand  and  enforce  the  truth  as  taught  by 
God  in  his  own  word. 

As  a  preacher,  Mr.  Challiss  was  variously  esti- 
mated, according  to  the  stand-point  from  which  the 
estimate  was  made.  The  same  sermon  has  its  dif- 
ferent values  as  it  is  estimated  from  a  literary,  profes- 
sional, or  practical  stand-point.  So  the  same  preach- 
er, in  his  current  eiforts,  has  his  value  affixed  from 
these  different  points  of  view ;  and  it  sometimes  hap- 
pens that  those  valued  highest  from  one  point  are 
valued  lowest  from  another.  Where  there  is  harmony 
in  estimating  the  value  of  men  it  is  generally  found  in 
mediocrity,  as  few  preachers  can  excel  in  all  the  quali- 
ties which  are  subject  to  criticism.  If  Mr.  Chal- 
liss is  judged  from  the  practical  stand-point,  then, 
from  the  results  which  followed  his  labors,  he  was  no 


HEV.  JAMES  M.   C'lJALL/SS.  281 

ordinary  preacher.  Like  his  Master,  "  Tlie  common 
people  heard  him  gladly."  And  we  cannot  resist  the 
conclusion,  that  in  the  judgment  of  the  Master,  the 
man  whose  sermons  produce  the  greatest  results  in 
advancing  the  cause  of  Christ,  is  the  greatest  preacher. 
Canons  of  criticism  and  laws  of  sermonizing  will  hard- 
ly be  allowed  to  interfere  with  that  judgment. 

There  was  something  about  his  preaching  which 
fixed  the  truths  he  uttered  upon  the  hearts  of  his 
hearers.  Many  remember  sermons  preached  by  him 
twenty  and  over  forty  years  ago.  They  recall  them  as 
though  they  were  heard  but  yesterday.  There  was 
something  in  his  manner  and  spirit  that  impreased  his 
hearers  with  the  fact  that  he  was  honestly  in  earnest, 
and  that  commended  the  words  uttered  by  him  to 
their  own  conscience.  They  could  not  resist  the  con- 
viction that  he  felt  his  own  responsibility  and  made 
clear  theirs. 

His  style  of  j) reaching  was  generally  textual,  and  in 
a  good  degree  expository.  The  divisions  of  his  subject 
were  simple  and  natural,  and  his  sermons  were  more 
hortatory  than  argumentative.  He  had  a  good  com- 
mand of  language,  and  usually  spoke  Avith  much 
fluency,  and  presented  the  great  truths  of  the  Bible 
with  positiveness  and  clearness.  His  manner  in  the 
pulpit  was  earnest,  without  ranting ;  vivacious,  but 
grave ;  and  awakened  admiration  and  reverence  for  the 


282  RF^V.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

truths  he  presented.  His  sermons  were  easily  under- 
stood and  retained  in  memory,  and  well  adapted  to 
awaken  a  sense  of  personal  obligation  to  the  claims  of 
the  gospel.  The  people  generally  listened  to  him 
with  interest  and  jjleasure,  and  were  more  impressed 
with  the  truths  presented  than  concerned  with  criti- 
cisms on  the  preacher  presenting  them.  But  few 
who  heard  him  could  resist  the  conviction,  that  he 
fully  and  implicitly  accepted  the  gospel  he  preached, 
and  earnestly  desired  that  others  should  accept  it;  and 
that  he  had  a  deep  sense  of  his  own  responsibility  as  a 
servant  of  Christ,  to  persuade  men  to  be  reconciled  to 
God.  In  this  work  he  was  ''instant  in  season  and  out 
of  season." 

Mr.  Challiss  was  happy  in  the  selection  of  his  text, 
and  in  the  harmony  of  his  subjects  with  special  occa- 
sions. In  tliis  he  showed  much  tact.  His  hearers 
were  often  constrained  to  say — "How  practical," 
"  How  appropriate/'  "  How  apposite."  He  sometimes 
startled  them  by  the  telling  character  of  his  text. 
During  one  of  his  pastorates,  he  discovered  a  disposi- 
tion on  the  part  of  some  of  the  members  who  were  not 
over  active,  to  complain  of  the  zeal  of  some  earnest- 
hearted,  working  Christian  women.  It  was  freely 
intimated  that  they  were  exceeding  their  duty  and  that 
their  zeal  needed  restraint.  The  whole  current  of  feel- 
ing was  changed  by  a  sermon  from  the  pastor  from  the 


7//;r.  jA.)ii:s  m.  t'//A/./Jss.  2«;j 

words,  *'  Help  those  women  which  labored  with  me  in 
the  gospel." 

It  was  characteristic  of  Mr.  Challiss  that  he  gave 
himself  to  the  work  he  had  on  hand,  and  ever  sought 
to  adapt  himself  to  the  position  assigned  in  the  pre- 
sent. Though  loving  former  friends  and  former 
homes,  and  ever  giving  them  a  warm  place  in  his 
heart,  he  never  allowed  these  past  relations  to  interfere 
with  present  duties.  He  did  not  spend  his  strength 
in  mourning  for  former  days,  and  instituting  compari- 
sons to  prove  that  virtue  was  a  thing  of  the  past.  He 
did  not  consume  time  in  sighing  for  the  flesh-pots  of 
Egypt  or  building  air  castles  for  the  indefinite  future. 
He  lived,  not  in  the  past,  nor  in  the  future,  but  for 
the  present.  He  was  eminently  practical,  and  evinced 
unusual  facility,  not  only  in  meeting  the  current  duties 
of  life,  but  also  those  specialities  which  often  greatly 
disturb  the  current  flow.  He  accepted  the  situation  as 
it  was,  and  sought  a  full  apprehension  of  all  the  inter- 
ests and  responsibilities  of  the  present,  and  engaged  in 
the  work  he  had  to  do  with  all  his  might  and  soul . 
This  characteristic  was  manifest  throughout  his  public 
life,  in  all  his  work  as  a  preacher,  and  was  clearly 
evident  even  in  his  public  prayers. 

His  earnest  fidelity  in  his  private  religious  duties 
was  seen  in  his  outer  life.  Says  his  companion,  "  He 
was    a    man    of  strong   faith   in  prayer.     He  always 

24* 


284  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

looked  to  God  for  his  help  and  blessing  in  the  labors 
of  his  hand.  At  all  times,  prayer  seemed  a  privilege, 
and  the  throne  of  God  a  resting-place  for  his  soul." 

"  When  I  heard  him  pray,"  said  a  discerning  Chris- 
tian man,  "  I  thought  of  Andrew  Fuller's  distinction  , 
between  praying  and  making  a  prayer.    Brother  Chal- 
liss  always  prayed." 

Many  have  marked,  not  only  the  fervor,  but  also 
the  appropriateness  of  his  prayers  at  all  times  and 
places ;  whether  in  the  public  assembly,  at  social  meet- 
ings, in  the  family,  or  at  the  bed-side  of  the  sick  and 
dying.    He  always  seemed  to  have  audience  with  God. 

In  his  sermons,  addresses,  and  prayers  he  freely  used 
Bible  language,  and  was  very  full  and  happy  in  his 
quotations  of  Scripture  and  use  of  Scripture  illustra- 
tions. This  was  true  also  of  his  correspondence  and 
even  his  conversation. 

Mr.  Challiss  was  faithful  in  his  personal  efforts  for 
the  good  of  souls.  This  fact  has  often  been  seen  in 
the  current  narrative  of  his  life.  And  this  was  an  im- 
portant feature  of  his  labors,  contributing  no  little  to 
the  success  of  his  ministry  both  as  a  preacher  and  pas- 
tor. He  embraced  every  opportunity  for  this  kind  of 
work,  and  seemed  to  feel  that  he  held  the  vantage 
ground  when  he  could  say  personally  and  alone  to 
those  for  whom  he  labored,  "  Thou  art  the  man." 
Doubtless   some   thus   addressed    felt  sometimes  that 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIAELISS.  285 

they  were  unduly  pressed,  and  would  have  been  glad 
to  divide  the  responsibility  of  hearing  his  appeals  with 
a  whole  congregation,  and  thus  escape  the  personal 
issue;  but  there  were  few  whose  judgment  did  not 
commend  the  fidelity  of  the  man  who  thus  brought  the 
gospel  to  their  own  door  and  urged  them  personally  to 
accept  the  great  salvation,  and  there  were  some  in  all 
his  fields  of  labor  who  were  brought,  in  this  way,  to 
consecrate  themselves  to  Christ.  He  did  not  confine 
this  work  to  his  own  field,  but  by  word  and  by  letter, 
at  home  and  away,  he  had  earnest  personal  appeals  for 
each,  as  opportunity  afforded." 

In  a  letter  to  a  young  friend  he  said,  "  I  hope  you 
will  not  any  longer  neglect  your  duty.  '  If  ye  know 
these  things  happy  are  ye  if  ye  do  them.'  Remember 
you  cannot  take  neutral  ground,  between  the  church 
and  the  world.  The  Saviour  has  said,  ^He  that  is 
not  for  me  is  against  me.'  '  Ye  cannot  serve  two 
masters.'  Dare  not  any  longer  avoid  the  cross.  '  If 
any  man  will  be  my  disciple  let  him  take  up  his 
cross.'     Prompt  and  earnest  obedience  is  your  duty." 

The  following  reminiscence  given  by  a  daughter  of 
the  lady  referred  to,  further  illustrates  his  fidelity  in 
personal  efforts.  "  It  was  somewhere  about  1834,  Mr. 
Challiss  was  laboring  with  Rev.  Clarence  W.  Mul- 
ford  in  extra  meetings.  They  had  arranged  to  meet 
at  a  certain  school-house  where  meetings  were  occa- 


286  ^-^'^^^  JAMES  M.   VIIALLISS. 

sionally  held.  Mr.  Challiss  arrived  first,  hitched  his 
horse,  and  went  to  the  house  of  a  Mr.  C,  who  lived 
near.  He  knocked  and  unceremoniously  walked  in, 
saying  he  was  cold  and  waiting  for  Mr.  Mulford  to 
fill  an  appointment  that  evening.  He  saw  that  Mrs. 
C  did  not  recognize  him,  and  he  told  her  he  was  Mr. 
Challiss  and  asked  if  she  did  not  attend  the  meetings 
held  at  the  school-house.  No,  she  did  not,  on  account 
of  her  small  children.  Was  she  a  Christian  ?  No. 
He  urged  the  importance  of  her  personal  and  immedi- 
ate attention  to  the  subject  of  religion.  At  first  she 
seemed  indiiferent.  He  however  put  some  very 
pointed  questions,  and  soon  her  feelings  were  greatly 
changed.  He  saw  her  emotions  and  knelt  in  prayer, 
and  it  was  the  fervent  and  effectual  prayer  that  pre- 
vails with  God.  Mrs.  C.  felt  that  she  had  never 
heard  such  a  prayer,  and  she  was  constrained  to  ask 
'  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved.'  From  that  time  she 
was  an  earnest  seeker  of  the  way  of  life.  But  without 
privileges  of  attending  worship  and  with  none  to 
guide  her,  she  did  not  comprehend  the  plan  of  salva- 
tion through  Christ, — how  a  sinner  could  be  justified 
by  faith  in  Christ.  While  she  was  still  in  the  dark, 
Mr.  Challiss  commenced  a  series  of  meetings  in  the 
same  school-house.  She  was  permitted  to  attend.  It 
was  a  meeting  never  to  be  forgotten  by  many  on  ac- 
count of  the  manifest  presence  of  the   Lord.     Strong 


REV.  JAMES  M    CHALLISS.  287 

men  became  as  little  children,  and  in  tears  bowed  low 
before  God.  The  people  lingered  after  the  services 
closed  and  refused  to  leave  the  place.  This  was  a 
memorable  time  to  Mrs.  C.  '  Old  things  passed  away, 
and  all  things  became  new.'  She  rejoiced  in  Christ 
and  soon  after  united  with  the  church,  and  for  more 
than  thirty  years  lived  a  consistent  Christian,  and 
then  died  in  the  triumphs  of  faith,  and  in  hope  of  a 
glorious  immortality.  She  ever  cherished  profound 
respect  and  gratitude  for  the  servant  of  God  who  had 
so  faithfully  admonished  her;  the  incidents  of  that  first 
interview  were  always  fragrant  in  her  memory ;  and 
she  often  repeated  the  story  to  her  children  with  ex- 
pressions of  gratitude." 

As  a  pastor,  Mr.  Challiss  was  pre-eminently 
adapted  to  his  work.  Anxious  to  maintain  the  purity 
of  the  church  and  the  Christian  character  and  fidelity 
of  her  membership ;  closely  observant  of  the  peculiar 
disposition  and  circumstances  of  his  people,  adapting 
himself  with  great  facility  to  all  the  phases  of  the 
pastoral  work,  and  with  a  heart  full  of  sympathy,  he 
readily  gained  the  confidence  of  the  people  and  ex- 
ercised great  controlling  influence  over  them  without 
their  consciousness  of  the  fact.  He  was  careful  in 
the  reception  of  members  into  the  church,  yet  very 
considerate  and  wisely  discriminating. 

"He   was    present,"   said    a    neighboring    pastor, 


288  ^E^-  JAMES  M.    CIIALLISS. 

"  when  a  number  of  candidates  came  before  tlie  church 
I  served,  to  relate  their  experience.  Among  them 
were  some  quite  young.  I  questioned  them  closely  to 
know  the  evidence  of  their  conversion  and  views  of 
Christian  doctrine.  After  we  returned  to  my  house 
Brother  Challiss  said  to  me,  'Well,  my  dear  brother, 
I  really  thought  you  were  putting  bars  up  so  high 
that  not  one  of  the  lambs  would  be  able  to  get  over. 
But  they  were  well  trained,  and  I  was  delighted  with 
their  answers.' " 

We  are  not  to  infer  that  Mr.  Challiss  was  indiffer- 
ent to  clear  evidence  of  conversion  in  the  case  of  any 
desiring  membership  in  the  church  of  which  he  Mas 
pastor.  He  expected  all  to  give  a  reason  for  the  hope 
that  was  in  them  with  meekness  and  fear ;  but  in  es- 
timating this  evidence  he  had  great  sympathy  and  dis- 
crimination in  fiivor  of  youth  and  those  who  had  en- 
joyed but  limited  religious  instruction.  He  did  not 
look,  as  too  many  seem .  to  do,  for  that  knowledge  or 
gravity  of  deportment,  in  a  child  or  youth,  that  be- 
longs to  an  old  man;  but  expected  that  a  child  would 
be  a  child,  though  a  "child  of  grace."  He  believed 
that  all  who  gave  Scriptural  evidence  of  conversion,  no 
matter  how  crudely  that  evidence  was  presented,  or 
how  ignorant  they  were  of  systems  of  theology  or  the 
general  doctrines  of  the  Bible,  were  proper  subjects  for 
baptism,  and  that  they  should  be   received   into  the 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  289 

church,  where  they  could  have  Christian  care  and 
companionship  while  learning  "the  way  of  God  more 
perfectly;"  and  where,  all  their  life,  they  should  con- 
tinue "To  grow  in  grace  and  in  the  knowledge  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." 

He  deemed  the  influence  of  church  relations  and 
Christian  association  vastly  important  to  every  con- 
verted soul.  He  was  accustomed  to  say :  "  The  church 
is'  the  young  Christian's  home.  His  hold  upon  the 
world  has  been  broken  by  converting  grace.  He  once 
loved  the  world  with  its  divers  lusts.  His  hope  and 
portion  were  on  things  below.  But  now  this  world  is 
not  his  rest.  He  is  a  pilgrim.  He  finds  a  home,  a 
sweet  home,  in  the  church,  and  rejoices  as  he  sings — 

'  Here  my  best  friends,  my  kindred  dwell, 
Here  God  ray  Saviour  reigns.' 

"  The  church  is  Christ's  spiritual  family — composed 
of  spiritual  materials — of  persons  feeling  a  deep  inter- 
est and  strong  affection  for  new-born  babes  in  Christ, 
nursing  mothers  and  fathers  to  care  for  them.  Here  is 
found  the  sincere  milk  of  the  word  of  God,  and  meat 
to  eat  that  the  world  knows  not  of.  God  requires  us 
to  identify  ourselves  with  his  people.  We  should  do 
it  for  the  sake  of  the  companionship  of  those  who 
through  faith  and  patience  inherit  the  promises,  and 
hold   up   the  cross  of  Christ  before  the  world.     We 


290  ^^''   JAMES  M.   ClIALLISS. 

should  do  it  for  our  own  interest  and  pleasure  and 
profit.  But  above  all  we  should  do  it  in  order  to 
glorify  God." 

In  receiving  members  he  carefully  instructed  them 
in  reference  to  their  duties  as  church  members,  and 
charged  them  with  great  earnestness  and  fidelity  to 
"Walk  worthy  of  the  vocation  wherewith  they  were 
called."  He  would  exhort  them,  "To  cherish  senti- 
ments of  affectionate  regard  for  each  other  as  children 
of  the  same  Father;  to  be  intimate  with  the  Holy 
Scriptures  and  always  maintain  closet-prayer;  to  be 
faithful  in  attendance  upon  the  Lord's  Day  services 
and  social  gatherings  for  worship;  to  cultivate  a  spirit 
of  benevolence,  that  others  might  receive  the  blessings 
of  the  gospel  which  had  so  enriched  them ;  and  also  to 
esteem  their  pastor  with  aifection  for  his  works'  sake, 
and  ever  to  regard  him  as  one  of  their  very  best 
friends." 

He  ever  labored  to  instruct  his  people  in  the  doc- 
trines and  duties  of  religion,  and  to  develop  the 
Christian  g-races  in  their  hearts.  He  cherished  for  his 
people  the  anxiety  and  love  of  a  father,  and  often  said, 
"'I  have  no  greater  joy  than  to  hear  that  my  children 
walk  in  the  truth.'  All  false  doctrine  produces  false 
practice.  See  how  soon  those  who  reject  Christ  in  his 
divine  nature  and  atoning  sacrifice  fall  into  mere  cold 
formal  or  mystical  religion,  but  little  removed  froin  in- 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CUALLISS.  291 

fidelity  itself,  though  under  the  mask  of  Christianity. 
How  zealously  some  'Pay  tithe  of  mint,  and  anise, 
and  cummin,  but  omit  the  weightier  matters  of  the 
law.  Blind  guides !  Who  strain  out  a  gnat  and  swal- 
low a  camel.'  And  often  while  defaming  the  simple 
doctrines  of  grace  as  pernicious,  their  own  lives  prove 
them  '  earthly,  sensual,  and  devilish.'  '  Beloved,  believe 
not  every  spirit,  but  try  the  spirits  whether  they  are  of 
God.'" 

He  always  endeavored  to  recognize  and  appreciate 
the  eiforts  of  his  people  to  maintain  Christian  life ;  and 
their  labors  to  advance  the  cause  of  Christ.  He  ever 
sought  to  give  them  full  credit  for  the  grace  they  had 
attained  and  the  good  they  were  trying  to  do,  hoping 
thus  to  stimulate  them  to  higher  attainments  and  more 
earnest  labors.  He  encouraged  them  to  take  hopeful 
views  of  religious  life  and  progress  generally.  He 
said,  "Though  iniquity  fearfully  abounds  and  the 
number  of  consistent  followers  of  Jesus  is  compara- 
tively small,  and  many  leave  their  first  love,  yet  we 
should  not  allow  a  spirit  of  despondency  to  gain  pos- 
session of  our  hearts,  and  induce  distrust  in  God's  pro- 
mise to  keep  his  people  and  bring  the  world  into  sub- 
jection to  himself. 

"The  numerous  instances  of  false  profession  should 
not  darken  our  faith  or  relax  our  efforts.  These  have 
been  found  in  every  period  of  the  church — even  in  the 
25 


292  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

day  of  our  Lord  and  his  apostles.  Were  all  the  apos- 
tles false  because  one  was  a  devil?  Shall  we  say  there 
is  no  genuine  gold  because  there  are  some  counterfeit 
coins?  A  falling  star  strikes  every  eye,  while  few  ob- 
serve the  many  fixed  and  regular  orbs  that  continue 
their  course.  God  has  a  great  multitude  of  dear  chil- 
dren, timid,  and  shrinking  from  public  notice,  yet 
faithful  and  earnest-hearted,  who  will  shine  as  the 
stars  in  the  firmament  of  glory." 

Mr.  Challiss  also  maintained  that  believers  should 
find  fulness  of  peace  and  joy  in  Christ,  even  amid  the 
conflicts  and  sorrows  of  life.  He  said,  "The  Saviour 
is  so  lovely  in  his  person,  so  full  in  all  his  office  work, 
so  remunerative  for  all  the  services  he  requires,  so  kind 
in  his  providences,  and  so  abundant  in  his  promises 
and  grace,  that  his  disciples  may  well  rejoice  in  him, 
even  in  the  darkest  days  of  affliction.  A  life  of  piety 
in  the  service  of  Christ,  embracing  pure  and  undefiled 
religion,  affords  to  the  humblest  Christian  the  most 
permanent  and  perfect  satisfaction.  He  knows  that  he 
is  dear  to  Jesus,  and  Jesus  is  altogether  lovely  to  him, 
^Unto  you  who  believe  he  is  precious.'  'What 
think  ye  of  Christ?'  This  is  the  touch-stone  by  which 
to  try  our  present  state  and  our  future  hopes.  We 
cannot  be  right  in  the  rest,  unless  we  think  rightly  of 
him.  We  need  not  despair  for  any  good  if  Christ 
thinks  Avell  of  us.     Then  let  us  ever  go  to  Jesus!    Let 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLTSS.  293 

US  ever  live  near  to  Jesus.  He  is  a  friend  that  sticketh 
closer  than  a  brother,  and  is  willing  and  able  to  do 
exceeding  abundantly  above  all  that  we  can  ask  or 
think." 

Mr.    Challiss    was    always  anxious  to   maintain  a 
healthful  discipline  in  the  church,  holding  the  mem- 
bers faithful  to  their   covenanted   engagements ;    not 
with  a  severe  or  suspicious  judgment,  but  with  all 
charity  and  forbearance.     He  said,  "  We  are  brought 
into  the  church  for  the  purpose  of  being  each  other's 
keepers   or   helpers.      We    are    to    watch   over   our 
brethren,  and  admonish  and  reprove  them  as  circum- 
stances   may  require.     I   do   not   mean   that  church 
members  are  to  pry  into  each  other's  secrets,  or  to  be 
busybodies  in   other  men's  matters;  nor  are  they  to 
assume  authority  over  each  other  and  act  the  part  of 
tyrannical  inquisitors.     But  still    we    are,  'to  exhort 
one   another  daily,  lest  any  be  hardened  through  the 
deceitfulness  of  sin.'     We  are  not  to  suifer  sin  upon 
one  another.     '  Brethren,  if  a  man  be  overtaken  in  a 
fault,    ye    who    are    spiritual,    restore    such    a    one 
in   the   spirit   of  meekness ;   considering  thyself  lest 
thou  also  be  tempted.'     Very  often  the  cause  suffers 
much  by  neglecting  to  look  after  cases  of  discipline. 
By    prompt    and    kind    action    the    church   is   often 
saved   much   trouble   and   the   members   are   greatly 
benefited." 


294  ^^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

In  his  personal  intercourse  with  his  people,  and  in 
his  visits  among  them  as  pastor,  Mr.  Challiss  was 
earnest  and  faithful.  Their  sorrows  were  his;  their 
joys  gave  joy  to  him.  In  times  of  sickness  or  death, 
he  was  especially  attentive,  and  in  the  sympathy  of 
his  nature  he  seemed  to  take  a  part  of  their  burden ; 
and  though  this  did  not  make  their  burden  less, 
it  helped  them  to  bear  it.  Says  one,  in  referring  to  a 
time  of  great  sorrow,  "  Brother  Challiss  was  the  first 
to  come  and  sympathize  with  us  and  pray  for  us. 
And,  oh,  what  comfort  his  prayers  and  words  of  sym- 
pathy brought  to  our  hearts !"  Says  another,  "  We 
lived  neighbors  to  him  for  years.  He  seemed  more 
like  a  father  than  a  mere  neighbor.  He  was  so  kind, 
and  deeply  interested  in  our  welfare,  and  so  full  of 
sympathy  in  our  trouble.  Though  we  were  members 
of  another  denomination,  yet  we  sent  for  him,  first,  in 
our  great  affliction.  His  words  of  counsel  and  comfort 
were  invaluable  to  us ;  and  his  prayers  seemed  to  put 
the  hand  of  God  beneath  us."  And  many  joined  in 
saying  ;  "  We  respected  him  very  much,  and  felt  that 
his  visits  in  our  families  were  a  great  favor.  His 
words  of  counsel  and  his  prayers  were  always  so  earn- 
est and  faithful,  and  just  suited  to  our  peculiar  cir- 
cumstances. He  seemed  like  a  father  as  well  as 
pastor,  and  we  felt  a  twofold  confidence  in  him." 

In  these   visits   every  member   of  the  family  was 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CITALLTSS.  295 

"recognized  by  him,  and  he  had  a  word  of  instruction 
or  encouragement  for  each  one.  He  was  quite  a  favor- 
ite with  the  children  of  the  household,  and  they  al- 
ways welcomed  him  in  his  visits  and  regarded  him  as 
their  true  friend  ;  and  not  a  few  of  these  received  im- 
pressions from  his  visits  and  instructions,  while  they 
were  in  early  youth,  which  gave  direction  to  all  their 
subsequent  life. 

In  his  pastoral  visits  none  were  neglected.  The 
poor  and  lone  ones,  the  widow  and  orphan,  received 
his  special  care  and  sympathy,  and  were  often  cheered 
on  in  their  life  struggles  and  sorrows  by  the  ministra- 
tions of  this  faithful  servant  of  Jesus. 

The  general  expressions  from  all  the  fields  of  labor 
occupied  by  Mr.  Challiss,  agree  in  a  high  estimate  of 
his  character  as  preacher  and  pastor.  A  successor  to 
his  first  pastorate  says ;  "  I  do  not  think  that  the 
people  on  this  field  regarded  him  as  a  great  preacher, 
but  as  a  very  good  preacher,  and  always  listened  to 
his  sermons  with  profit  and  pleasure."  Similar  im- 
pressions were  found  by  his  successors  on  all  the  fields 
he  occupied.  The  universal  testimony  is,  that  he  fully 
and  faithfully  preached  the  gospel,  never  shunning 
to  declare  the  whole  counsel  of  God ;  that  his  sermons 
were  pointed  and  plain,  easily  understood  and  remem- 
bered ;  that  he  commanded  good  congregations,  and 
was  listened  to  with  evident  attention  and  pleasure ; 


296  ^^^   JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

and    that    his    labors    were    generally  followed    by* 
marked  good  results. 

As  a  pastor,  all  regarded  him  as  superior,  having 
few  equals ;  prudent,  considerate,  and  persevering  in 
his  work  ;  afifable  in  his  intercourse,  and  always  wel- 
comed in  his  personal  and  family  visits.  Any  man 
might  well  be  gratified  with  the  record  Mr.  Challiss 
left  in  the  memory  and  hearts  of  the  people  among 
whom  he  lived  and  labored  as  preacher  and  pastor  for 
years. 

In  his  intercourse  with  men  generally,  Mr.  Challiss 
was  genial  and  courteous;  with  a  good  degree  of 
suavity  of  manners,  and  a  generous  heart,  he  was  quite 
a  favorite  in  social  life,  where  his  conduct  was  always 
recognized  as  consistent  with  his  position  as  a  Chris- 
tian and  a  minister  of  the  gospel.  He  possessed  those 
elements  of  character  and  that  benevolence  of  heart 
which  gave  him  ready  access  to  men  in  all  positions  of 
life,  and  he  left  good  impressions  upon  those  with 
whom  he  mingled. 

"  I  knew  him,  several  years  before  his  death,"  said 
a  neighboring  pastor.  "I  always  held  him  in  high  es- 
teem. From  my  personal  knowledge  of  him  I  be- 
lieved him  to  be  scrupulously  conscientious,  devotedly 
pious,  and  intensely  in  earnest  as  a  Christian  minister. 
Socially  he  was  agreeable  and  entertaining, — as  a 
friend  he  was  faithful  and  true." 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  297 

The  confidence  which  he  reposed  in  others,  and  the 
childlike  trust  with  which  he  often  leaned  upon  his 
friends,  disarmed  suspicion  and  invited  confidence  in 
return. 

In  his  relations  to  the  churches  and  pastors  general- 
ly, Mr.  Challiss  was  greatly  respected  and  always  wel- 
comed to  their  pulpits.  The  positions  of  honor  and 
trust  so  frequently  and  repeatedly  assigned  him  by  his 
brethren  show  their  estimate  of  his  virtues  and  worth. 
And  while  he  did  not  seek  for  such  positions,  yet  he 
did  not  shrink  from  any  duty  his  brethren  and  the 
cause  of  Christ  demanded  at  his  hands.  His  labors 
and  counsels  were  often  solicited  in  times  of  emergen- 
cy, and  he  was  accepted  as  a  wise  and  prudent  coun- 
sellor. 

He  desired  that  each  church  should  have  a  good 
pastor,  and  that  each  pastor  should  be  useful,  com- 
fortable, and  permanent  in  his  pastorate.  He  had  no 
sympathy  with  those  churches  and  ministers  who  were 
restless,  impatient,  and  unreasonable  in  their  demands, 
and  who  were  changing  their  relations  without  good 
and  sufficient  causes.  He  said,  "  May  God  forgive 
the  restless  spirit  of  some  of  his  professed  followers 
who  seek  to  disturb  the  relation  between  church  and 
pastor." 

He  had  very  little  respect  for  pretensions  in 
ministers  of  the  gospel,  or  ornament  when  compared 


298  I^EV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

with  solid  worth.  And  he  had  but  little  patience 
with  those  churches,  which,  in  seeking  a  pastor,  re- 
jected men  of  solid  worth  and  established  character, 
and  accepted  men  whose  attractive  address  was  their 
chief,  if  not  their  only  recommendation.  He  felt  that 
a  good  man,  adapted  to  the  field  and  willing  to  work 
for  Christ;  and  possessing  as  good  natural  and  ac- 
quired abilities  as  the  church  could  command,  was 
just  the  man  for  their  pastor. 

The  following  quotations  from  a  letter  to  a  church 
which  had  solicited  him,  the  second  time,  to  send  them 
a  man  suitable  for  them,  will  give  some  idea  of  his 
type  of  a  pastor.  "  You  speak  of  sending  you  a  good 
minister.  This  I  will  do  if  I  can,  for  I  feel  a  lively 
interest  in  that  old  'mother  of  churches.'  But  I  am 
at  a  loss  to  know  what  to  do  for  my  brethren  there, 
when  the  excellent  brother  I  sent  failed  to  satisfy 
them.  The  fact  is,  if  the  church  only  knew  what  was 
for  their  best  interest,  they  would  try  to  secure  that 
brother  for  their  pastor  if  they  can  possibly  get  him. 
He  is  in  no  need  of  changing  his  place,  but  I  still  think 
he  would  make  you  another  visit  if  a  suitable  letter 
were  sent  him.  There  are  several  things  about  him  that 
you  don't  often  meet  with  in  one  man.  He  is  a  tried 
man ;  a  devotedly  pious  man ;  a  very  industrious  man. 
He  is  beloved  wherever  he  is  known,  and  the  more 
you  know  him  the  better  you  will  like  him.     He  is 


REV.  JAMES  M.  CHALLISS.  299 

just  adapted  to  a  country  congregation;  none  of  your 
stiff,  proud  stuck-ups,  but  one  who  makes  it  his  busi- 
ness to  serve  the  church  and  save  souls." 

During  all  his  ministry,  Mr.  Challiss  was  accus- 
tomed to  assist  his  brethren  in  extra  or  protracted 
meetings.  He  loved  this  work  and  had  special  adapt- 
ation for  it,  and  great  endurance  to  continue  in  it. 
His  assistance  in  these  meetings  was  often  sought  for, 
and  frequently  his  labors  greatly  blest.  He  often 
spent  days,  and  sometimes  weeks,  away  from  home, 
engaged  in  this  work.  When  other  men  were  worn 
out  by  extra  services,  he  still  seemed  fresh  for  the 
work.  His  ministering  brethren  often  said  to  those 
seeking  help,  "Get  Brother  Challiss  to  help  you. 
He  never  wears  out.  He  has  a  throat  and  lungs  of 
iron.  He  will  help  you  if  not  otherwise  engaged." 
He  always  responded  favorably  when  he  could.  He 
tried  to  arrange  his  home  work  so  that  the  cause  there 
should  not  suffer  by  his  absence,  and  then  he  sought 
to  enter  into  the  special  services  with  all  his  heart. 
But  he  was  not  always  free  from  conflicting  anxieties, 
as  will  appear  from  the  following  incident. 

While  he  was  pastor  at  Upper  Freehold  he  went  to 
Trenton  to  assist  the  pastor  in  special  meetings.  To 
accommodate  a  neighbor  who  was  repairing  his  house, 
he  took  a  wagon  to  bring  back  a  load  of  shingles  on 
his  return.     Repeated  indications  of  a  storm  kept  him 


300  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

anxious  lest  his  neighbor's  house  should  suffer  damage. 
His  Trenton  brother  saw  that  he  was  restless  and  pro- 
bably thinking  more  about  the  shingles  and  the  neigh- 
bor's house  than  the  meetings,  and  he  finally  said  to 
him,  "  Brother  Challiss,  go  home  and  take  that  man's 
shingles  and  return  again,  but  don't  bring  a  wagon  for 
any  more  shingles."  He  accepted  the  moral,  and  ever 
after  sought  to  engage  in  these  special  meetings  unin- 
cumbered with  conflicting  claims. 

Said  the  late  Rev.  George  Higgins,  "  I  have  been 
repeatedly  associated  with  Brother  Challiss  in  pro- 
tracted meetings,  to  which  I  revert  with  great  satisfac- 
tion. He  was  an  earnest  and  efficient  co-worker  in 
these  meetings.  His  presence  in  the  families  visited 
was  always  pleasant ;  his  conversation  edifying  and  his 
general  influence  excellent." 

Rev.  A.  D.  Gillette,  D.  D.,  now  of  Washington, 
says,  "  When  the  church  on  Twelfth  street  was  being 
erected,  and  yet  worshiping  in  the  basement,  Brother 
Challiss  took  a  lively  interest  in  the  progress  of  our 
cause,  and  often  assisted  us  in  our  evening  services. 
At  a  time  of  unusual  attention  to  religion  among  my 
people  he  spent  an  entire  week  with  us.  As  the 
Lord's  Day  drew  nigh  we  regretted  that  he  must  leave 
us  and  urged  him  to  return  and  be  with  us  the  follow- 
ing week ;  two  brethren  of  my  church  offering  to  pay 
him  for  his  services.     He  replied,  'Brethren,  I  want 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  301 

no  pay,  I  love  the  cause,  and  gladly  would  spend  next 
week  with  you,  but  my  garden  must  be  planted  or  in 
a  few  days  it  will  be  too  late.'  These  good  men  said 
to  him,  '  Employ  a  gardener,  and  let  us  pay  him  ;  and 
you  come  and  labor  among  these  growing  plants  in  the 
grarden  of  the  Lord.'  Brother  Challiss  came  on  Mon- 
day,  and  in  part  as  the  result  of  his  devoted  services  in 
our  midst,  I  baptized  that  year  one  hundred  and  six 
into  the  fellowship  of  the  Eleventh  Church." 

Mr.  Challiss  continued  to  assist  his  brethren  during 
seasons  of  special  service  all  through  his  ministry,  and 
even  to  within  a  few  weeks  of  his  death.  One  of  these 
seasons  of  special  labor  claims  more  than  a  passing 
notice.  It  occurred  during  his  last  pastorate.  Early 
in  January,  1854,  he  went,  by  special  invitation,  to 
assist  Rev.  J.  E.  Wilson,  pastor  of  the  First  Baptist 
Church,  Cape  May.  He  felt  a  deep  interest,  both  in 
this  old  church  and  their  young  pastor.  This  was  the 
oldest  Baptist  church  in  all  West  Jersey  excepting  the 
one  of  which  he  himself  was  pastor.  It  was  consti- 
tuted in  1712,  and  had  been  closely  identified  with  the 
old  Cohansey  Church  in  the  struggles  of  their  early 
history  and  in  their  labors  to  extend  the  gospel  into 
the  regions  beyond  them. 

The  youthful  pastor  of  this  old  church,  who  had 
been  ordained  only  a  few  months  before,  was  baptized 
by  Mr.  Challiss  in  1846,  while  pastor  at  Marlton,  and 


302  ^^^-  J^^MES  M.   CHALLISS. 

his  Christian  life  and  success  in  the  ministry  greatly 
interested  his  old  pastor.  With  the  associations,  add- 
ing to  his  general  anxiety  for  the  advancement  of  the 
cause  of  Christ,  Mr.  Challiss  accepted  the  invitation  to 
assist  in  these  extra  meetings,  with  peculiar  interest. 
The  Sunday  before  entering  upon  this  work,  was,  he 
said,  "  A  Happy  New  Year's  day  at  Roadstown.  I 
baptized  that  day  six  rejoicing  converts,  and  then 
gathered  with  my  people  around  the  Lord's  table  and 
celebrated  the  great  love  of  Jesus,  as  presented  in  the 
emblems  before  us,  with  gratitude  and  much  comfort 
of  soul." 

With  his  heart  warm  in  the  enjoyment  of  this 
Lord's  day's  privileges  and  experience,  he  hastened  to 
Cape  May,  fully  awake  to  all  the  interests  of  the  work, 
and  entered  upon  it, — not  professionally,  but  with 
deep,  soul-felt  sympathy  and  with  all  his  might. 
The  meetings  had  continued  but  a  little  time  before 
the  power  of  God  was  manifested  in  the  reviving  of 
his  people  and  in  the  awakening  and  conversion  of 
souls.  A  marked  religious  interest  was  felt  through- 
out the  whole  community,  and  there  were  clear  in- 
dications of  a  gracious  and  extended  revival.  Mr. 
Challiss  rejoiced  with  the  pastor  in  this  good  work, 
and  his  heart  was  fully  awake  to  its  importance  and 
blessedness.  But  in  the  midst  of  the  interest,  his  time 
of  absence  from  his  own  people  expired,  and  true  to 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLfSS.  303 

their  claims  he  made  his  arrangements  to  return 
home.  The  evening  for  his  arrival  at  home  came, 
and  his  family  and  friends  vt'ere  awaiting  him ;  but 
instead  of  the  returning  pastor  there  came  the  fol- 
lowing letter. 

"  The  First  Cape  May  Baptist  Church,  to  the  Cohan- 
SEY  Baptist  Church,  sendeth  Christian  love. 

"Dear  Brethren: — God  has  blessed  the  labors  of 
your  pastor  with  this  church  in  a  signal  manner.  The 
church  has  been  united  and  greatly  revived,  and  un- 
converted ones  have  been  made  to  tremble  and  cry  for 
mercy.  Our  house  is  crowded  nightly,  and  the  inte- 
rest is  evidently  increasing.  Already,  sixteen  have 
presented  themselves  for  prayer,  and  some  are  rejoicing 
in  the  Saviour's  love.  Last  evening  Brother  Challiss 
informed  us  that  he  must  leave  us  and  return  to  his 
own  people.  The  thought  pained  and  distressed  us. 
He  was  so  much  in  the  spirit  of  the  meetings  and  pos- 
sessed so  much  influence  over  the  congregation  that  we 
knew  if  he  left  the  interest  would  flag.  It  was  pro- 
posed that  the  voice  of  the  congregation  be  taken; 
upon  which  every  one  in  the  house  rose,  requesting — 
nay,  beseeching  Brother  Challiss  to  stay;  and  direct- 
ing this  letter  to  be  written  to  you,  giving  the  facts  in 
the  case.  Brother  Challiss  then  reluctantly — not  be- 
cause he  is  not  interested  in  the   meeting,  but  fearing 

2(3 


304  ^^y-  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

that  his  presence  might  be  needed  at  home — concluded 
to  stay. 

"Brethren,  God  is  in  this  matter.  He  directed  us 
to  your  pastor  in  the  first  instance,  and  now  as  plainly 
as  indications  can  speak,  they  call  upon  him  to  stay  a 
few  days  longer.  Pray  for  us  that  greater  manifesta- 
tions of  the  divine  jiower  may  be  seen  among  us,  and 
that  souls  by  scores  may  be  brought  to  the  Saviour," 

''By  order  of  the  Church." 

This  letter  was  dated  January  18th,  1854,  and  was 
signed  by  the  pastor  and  four  deacons  of  the  church. 
It  shows  how  highly  these  friends  valued  the  presence 
and  labors  of  Mr.  Challiss  among  them,  and  also  their 
due  respect  for  the  obligations  he  was  under  to  his  own 
people.  Now  under  these  circumstances,  he  felt  the 
highest  claim  of  duty  required  that  he  should  remain 
longer  at  Cape  May.  His  own  people  heartily  coin- 
cided with  this  decision,  and  responded  to  this  cour- 
teous and  importunate  request  of  a  sister  church,  by 
continued  prayer,  that  God  would  still  bless  their  pas- 
tor's labors  there;  and  that  greater  manifestations  of 
the  Divine  presence  would  be  granted  to  that  people. 

A  few  days  later,  the  pastor  of  this  chm-ch  wrote  to 
the  "Christian  Chronicle,"  "God  is  blessing  the  old 
Cape  May  Church.  We  are  now  in  the  midst  of  a 
gracious  revival.  Brother  Challiss  has  been  laboring 
with  us  for  two  weeks  past  with  great  success.     Truly 


NJCV.  .JAVA'S  M.    CJJAJJJSS  0()5 

we  can  say,  'The  Lord  hath  done  great  things  for  us, 
whereof  we  are  glad.'  Past  difficulties  have  been 
buried  and  forgotten;  backsliders  have  been  restored, 
and  many  souls  converted,  and  others  are  still  inquir- 
ing. An  intense  interest  pervades  the  congregation, 
and  indeed  the  whole  coniraunity  seems  imjjressed, 
that  God  is  with  his  people." 

This  was  one  of  those  marked  seasons  which  occur 
only  occasionally  in  the  history  of  a  church — blessed 
seasons  of  refreshing  to  Zion  and  ingathering  of  souls 
to  Christ.  This  old  church  was  much  strengthened, 
and  the  heart  of  their  young  pastor  was  made  glad ; 
and  they  were  all  better  prepared  for  a  loss  which  s(ion 
after  befell  them.  This  misfortune,  or  j)erha})s,  "bless- 
ing in  disguise,"  was  the  loss  of  their  old  meeting- 
house; which  was  destroyed  by  fire  on  Sunday  morn- 
ing, February  5th,  and  while  these  protracted  meet- 
ings were  still  in  progress.  But  they  had  been 
strengthened  to  endure  this  loss  and  to  press  on  in 
their  work.  So  they  wrote  to  their  sister  churches  at 
the  next  Association,  September,  1854,  "In  reviewing 
the  last  year  we  are  (constrained  to  give  thanks  to  God 
with  gladness.  We  have  enjoyed  a  gracious  revival, 
and  many  precious  souls  were  converted.  We  are  now 
building  a  meeting-house  in.  the  village,  and  hope  to 
occupy  it  soon."  In  the  early  part  of  the  winter  their 
new  honse  was  dedicated. 


3(j(j  REV.  JAMES  M.   C'1/ALLJSS. 

Mr.  Challiss  greatly  rejoiced  in  this  work  of  grace, 
and  uas  thankful  that  God  permitted  him,  in  any 
wise,  to  contribute  to  it  and  to  share  so  largely  in  its 
blessings.  It  was  a  season  of  special  joy  and  refresh- 
ing to  his  own  soul,  and  he  felt  strengthened  for  his 
continued  labors  among  his  own  people. 

The  interest  Mr.  Challiss  felt  in  the  extension  of 
Christ's  kingdom  was  by  no  means  confined  to  his  own 
limited  field,  but  embraced  the  whole  world,  and  led 
him  into  hearty  co-operation  with  the  agencies,  both 
local  and  general,  engaged  in  this  w^ork.  In  addition 
to  the  continued  work  of  his  own  pastorate  and  his 
labors  in  extra  meetings  in  neighboring  fields,  and 
with  other  churches,  he  assisted  in  the  general 
work  of  home  evangelization,  earnestly  co-operating 
with  his  brethren,  throughout  the  state  and  country, 
and  he  was  also  closely  identified,  in  sympathy 
and  labors,  with  the  efforts  for  evangelizing  the 
world. 

He  was  a  life  director  or  life  member  of  the  differ- 
ent missionary  societies  of  his  own  denomination  and 
also  of  several  general  societies.  He  was  present  and 
assisted  in  the  organization  of  the  "  New  Jersey  Bap- 
tist State  Convention,"  and  was  ever  deeply  interested 
in  its  work  of  state  evangelization.  Except  during 
his  seven  years'  pastorate  in  Pennsylvania,  he  served 
this  society,  either  as  a  member  of  its  Board  of  Man- 


RRV.  JAMES  M.    CI/ALL/SS.  ;>07 

ao'ers,  or  Vice  President,  from  its  origin  till  his  death. 
While  a  j^astor  in  Pennsylvania,  we  find  him  actively 
working  as  a  member  of  the  Board  of  Managers  of 
the  Missionary  Convention  in  that  state. 

He  was  j)reseiit  a,s  a  delegate  at  the  formation  of  the 
American  and  Foreign  Bible  Society  in  1837,  and 
always  earnestly  co-operated  in  the  circulation  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures.  He  was  by  no  means  indiiferent  to 
the  foreign  mission  work,  but  felt  that  the  Avork  of 
home  missions  was  the  great  work  committed  to  the 
American  churches.  He  contemplated  .with  wonder 
and  gratitude  the  rapid  growth  of  our  country,  both  in 
the  expansion  of  the  territory  occupied  and  the  vast 
population,  gathered  from  so  many  nations,  and  he 
felt  that  while  other  lands  should  not  be  neglected, 
our  own  land  should  be  especially  cared  for  and  fully 
provided  with  religious  instruction. 

Mr.  Challiss  was  warmly  attached  to  the  doctrines 
and  ordinances  of  the  gospel  as  held  by  Baptists,  and 
rejoiced  in  the  rapid  growth  of  his  denomination,  in 
the  extension  of  their  distinctive  principles,  as  wit- 
nessed by  him  during  the  forty-six  years  of  his  minis- 
try. He  often  compared  the  condition  of  his  denom- 
ination in  the  early  and  latter  days  of  his  ministry. 
In  his  own  state,  during  this  time,  there  had  been  a  net 
increase  of  regular  Baptist  churches,  from  43  to  138,  or 
more  than  220  per  cent. ;  of  ministers,  from  40  to  160, 


30}^  i^A'K  JAMES  M.  ClIALLISS. 

or  300  per  cent. ;  of  church  members,  from  3,500  to 
23,100,  or  560  per  cent. 

In  the  United  States,  during  the  same  time,  there 
had  been  a  net  increase  of  regular  Baptist  churches, 
from  3,500  to  13,100,  or  280  per  cent. ;  of  ministers, 
from  2,400  to  8,500,  or  more  than  250  per  cent. ;  and 
of  total  membership  of  Baptist  churches,  from  220,000 
to  1,100,000,  or  400  per  cent. 

The  contrast  which  he  saw  in  the  work  of  education 
among  Baptists  was  no  less  marked  and  encouraging. 
When  his  mind  was  directed  to  the  work  of  the  min- 
istry in  1819,  Brown  University,  Providence,  Rhode 
Island,  was  the  only  Baptist  school  affording  a  full 
course  of  collegiate  studies,  and  there  was  not  a  single 
Baptist  Theological  Seminary  in  the  United  States. 
True,  there  were  a  number  of  schools  under  the  pat- 
ronage or  guidance  of  Baptists,  which  afforded  oppor- 
tunity for  advanced  studies  ;  and  there  were  also  some 
experienced  pastors,  receiving  young  men  under  their 
personal  instructions,  where  they  were  taught  system- 
atic theology  and  pastoral  duties,  with  some  practical 
advantages  which  a  seminary  could  not  furnish.  But 
this  course  of  studies  was  limited,  subject  to  much  in- 
terruption, and  few  enjoyed  even  these  advantages  of 
advanced  academic  studies  or  limited  theological  train- 
ing. Mr.  Challiss  often  regretted  that  his  own  early 
opportunities,  both  of  general  and  theological  educa- 


RSV.  JAMES  M.   OHALLISS.  309 

tion,  had  been  so  limited,  and  felt  a  great  interest  in 
the  increasing  facilities  for  general  education  ;  and  es^ 
pecially  for  the  education  of  the  rising  ministry.  He 
rejoiced  that  instead  of  one,  there  were  twenty  colleges 
or  universities  under  the  care  of  Baptists,  and  ten 
theological  seminaries;  all  actively  engaged  in  their 
great  mission. 

He  delighted  to  recount  these  changes,  and  thanked 
God  that  he  had  lived  to  witness  them,  and  had  been 
permitted  to  contribute  his  mite  in  this  great  growth 
of  his  denomination. 

He  lived  in  an  important  era  in  the  history  of  Bap- 
tists. They  had  engaged  with  increasing  energy  in 
all  the  departments  of  Christian  labor.  Home  and 
foreign  missions,  Bible  and  tract  distribution,  Sunday- 
schools,  ministerial  and  general  education,  were  claim- 
ing much  attention  and  awakening  new  zeal  in  the 
churches  when  he  entered  upon  the  ministry.  These 
labors  of  Christian  activity  and  benevolence  continued 
to  increase  during  the  entire  time  of  his  ministry,  pro- 
ducing, under  God's  blessing,  results  as  cheering  as 
they  were  great. 

While  he  thus  rejoiced  in  the  prosperity  of  his  own 
denomination,  he  possessed  a  true  catholic  spirit.  He 
was  an  earnest  friend  and  co-worker  in  the  American 
Tract  Society,  Sunday  School  Union,  Seamen  Friends' 
Society,  and  like  organizations,  and  also  rejoiced  in  the 


310  REV.  J  A. WES  M.   CIlALLIS>i. 

growth  and  good  work  of  all  evangelical  denomina- 
tions. 

Though  accepting  fully  and  positively  the  distinct- 
ive views  of  Baptists,  and  holding  them  conscientious- 
ly and  firmly  as  taught  in  God's  word,  he  conceded  to 
others  the  rights  he  claimed  for  himself,  and  ever  re- 
spected their  honest  convictions,  as  gathered  from  the 
Scriptures,  and  bade  them  God-speed  in  all  their  ef- 
forts to  do  good.  His  manly  adherence  to  his  own 
convictions  of  truth  and  his  courteous  regard  for  those 
differing  from  him  gave  him  a  high  place  in  the  es- 
teem of  Christians  of  all  denominations. 

A  minister  of  another  denomination,  who  knew  liim 
for  many  years  and  had  been  a  neighboring  pastor  for 
several  years,  says :  "  I  always  respected  him  for  his 
faithful  adherence  to  the  principles  in  which  he  had 
become  established.  The  fear  of  man  or  desire  to 
please  never  held  so  strong  hold  of  him  as  to  cause 
him  to  depart  from  the  path  of  duty ;  yet  he  was  for- 
bearing and  kind  to  those  who  honestly  differed  from 
him,  when  he  believed  their  opinions  had  been  hon- 
estly formed.  He  showed  but  little  mercy  to  those 
who  differed  with  him  merely  from  selfish  or  party  pur- 
poses. He  has  left  in  his  earnest  life  a  monument  to 
commemorate  his  name  in  the  hearts  of  those  for  whom 
he  labored,  and  his  memory  is  fragrant  with  those 
who  associated  with    him,  of  every   Christian  name," 


JiA'V.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  311 

Mr.  Challiss  was  naturally  conservative  yet  decided- 
ly positive  in  character.  He  was  cautious,  and  hesi- 
tated to  engage  in  "  new  measures,"  or  reform  move- 
ments :  but  when  satisfied  of  the  right  and  necessity  of 
any    measure  there  were  few  warmer  or  firmer  friends. 

He  did  not  at  first  engage  in  the  "  Temperance 
Reformation,"  but  very  soon  recognized  the  move- 
ment as  of  God,  and  took  hold  of  the  work  with  a  will. 
As  early  as  1823,  he  was  enlisted  in  this  work  with 
all  his  heart, — totally  rejecting  all  intoxicating  drinks, 
and  added  to  his  list  of  prohibited  indulgences,  tobac- 
co, in  all  its  forms. 

In  these  early  times  it  was  the  custom  to  keep  spir- 
ituous liquors  in  families  to  proffer  to  visiting  friends. 
Indeed,  it  was  regarded  as  a  necessary  part  of  hospi- 
tality, and  as  essential  refreshment  to  weary  travelers 
and  to  those  not  weary.  Even  ministers  of  the  gospel 
were  expected  to  refresh  themselves  in  this  way  and 
thus  be  strengthened  to  minister  in  holy  things.  Some 
seem  to  have  accepted  this  view  as  their  interpretation 
of  the  Apostle  Paul's  advice  to  Timothy,  "  Drink  no 
longer  water,  but  use  a  little  wine  for  thy  stomach's 
sake,  and  thine  often  infirmities."  Such  interpreters 
did  not  always  stop  with  "  a  little,"  or  confine  them- 
selves to  "  wine,"  but  some  were  "  given  to  wine  and 
strong  drink,"  becoming  slaves  to  a  habit  which  led 
oi>  to  their  destruction. 


;j]2  REV.  JAMES  M.    ClfALLfSS. 

Soon  after  Mr.  Challiss  saw  it  his  duty  to  reject  to- 
tally all  intoxicating  drinks,  he  called  one  day  on  an 
old  and  valued  friend,  whose  hospitality  he  often  en- 
joyed. He  had  had  a  long  and  weary  ride  on  a  cold 
and  dreary  day.  According  to  custom,  the  usual  re- 
freshments were  set  out.  In  those  times  and  on  such 
an  occasion  it  was  regarded  almost  as  a  religious  duty 
to  take  a  little  ardent  spirits  to  refresh  poor  weary  na- 
ture, and  as  the  pastor  was  in  the  flesh  and  subject  to 
its  infirmities,  he  too  must  take  a  little,  to  keep  the 
physical  man  vigorous  for  spiritual  ministrations. 
Here,  then,  was  seeming  necessity  as  well  as  proflered 
hospitality,  and  the  invitation  was  given:  ''Come, 
Brother  Challiss,  come  now,  you  are  tired,  take  a  littk> 
of  something  to  drink."  But  the  positive  man,  from 
his  ne\v  stand-point,  total  abstinence,  spoke  out, — 
"  No  more  !  Brother  E ,  no  more  ! !  I  will  re- 
main tired."  Never  after  was  it  proffered  him  by 
these  friends.  He  did  not  leave  the  way  open,  by  an 
uncertain  declinature,  for  the  offer  to  be  repeated. 
His  friends  understood  at  once  where  he  was,  and  his 
positive  manner  freed  him  from  further  solicitation, 
and  many  friends  joined  him  in  his  efforts  to  advance 
the  cause  of  temperance. 

So  also  in  reference  to  the  question  of  slavery.  He 
was  cautious  and  reserved  in  his  opposition,  though 
his  moral  convictions  were  against  the  system,  and  he 


REV   JAMES  31.   CHALLISS  313 

knew  it  was  repugnant  to  the  spirit  of  the  gospel. 
He  greatly  deprecated  the  agitation  of  this  question  in 
religious  bodies,  and  was  disposed  to  lose  his  personal 
responsibility  in  this  matter  by  regarding  the  whole 
question  as  purely  political ;  with  which  ministers,  as 
such,  had  nothing  to  do.  And  he  would  have  pro- 
bably remained  with  these  views,  if  slavery  had  been 
content  to  remain  within  early  prescribed  bounds. 
But  when  slavery  demanded  that  these  barriers  should 
be  broken  down  and  the  whole  national  territory  be 
subje(!t  to  its  invasion,  and  that  every  man  should  con- 
sent to  this  aggression  despite  his  moral  convictions  to 
the  contrary,  with  multitudes  of  conservative  men,  he 
repelled  the  assumption  and  in  the  positiveness  of  his 
nature,  said,  "Thus  far  shalt  thou  go  and  no  farther." 
Henceforth  his  sympathies  were  growing  in  harmony 
with  the  friends  of  emancipation,  and  through  all  the 
war,  which  these  demands  of  slavery  inaugurated  he 
gradually  grew  in  these  convictions,  until  he  earnestly 
desired  and  prayed  for  the  overthrow  of  the  system. 
All  his  feelings  were  against  war,  and  he  would  have 
cheerfully  conceded  everything  possible  to  his  sense 
of  right,  to  avoid  a  conflict  which  he  knew  must  be 
followed  by  such  a  train  of  moral  evils  and  suffering 
and  sorrow  and  death.  He  wrote  June  26th,  1861 : 
"  War  and  rumors  of  war.  Oh,  how  sad  !  May  God 
sj>eedily    interpose    his    omnijwtent   arm,    and    cause 


314  REV.  JAMES  M    CIIALLISS. 

'Wars  to  cease  to  the  ends  of  the  earth.'  This  is  ray- 
constant  prayer." 

Again  he  wrote,  November  29,  1862:  "Oh,  this 
desolating  war !  When  shall  we  see  its  termination  ? 
And  when  will  the  people  learn  war  no  more?  It 
comforts  my  soul  to  remember,  '  That  the  Lord  reign- 
eth, — that  he  doeth  all  things  well, — that  he  will 
make  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  him.'  No  doubt 
God  designs  to  bring  out  of  this  evil  some  great  good 
for  this  nation,  and  I  think  that  good  is  the  final 
destruction  of  American  slavery.  May  God  hasten  it 
in  his  time." 

During  all  the  war  Mr.  Challiss  gave  the  govern- 
ment unequivocal  and  hearty  support.  His  labors, 
words  and  prayers  had  no  uncertain  sound.  The  posi- 
tiveness  of  his  character  was  manifested  in  this  matter, 
and  led  him  to  decided  expressions  in  favor  of  sus- 
taining the  government  and  of  condemnation  to  those 
who  were  opposing.  He  often  said,  "  Christ  first,  and 
my  country  next."  He  was  intensely  and  unqualifiedly 
devoted  to  the  government.  Says  one,  who  diiFered 
from  Mr.  Challiss  politically,  "  The  entire  community 
respected  him.  The  only  seeming  exception  to  this 
grew  out  of  different  views  in  reference  to  the  war. 
He  was  a  positive  patriot;  ardent  in  his  love  of  coun- 
try ;  in  his  admiration  of  the  President ;  and  in  his 
prayers  for  the  army;  and  cordial  in  his  detestation  of 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  315 

rebellion.  He  was  both  positive  and  demonstrative. 
He  prayed  for  friend  and  foe  so  that  the  Lord  and  the 
people  knew  who  he  meant  and  what  he  prayed  for. 
Bnt  his  strong  preferences  and  deep  feeling  never 
influenced  his  personal  courtesy  in  reference  to  those 
differing  from  him." 

He  greatly  rejoiced  over  the  close  of  the  war,  and 
hopefully  looked  forward  to  the  time  when  all  former 
animosities  would  be  forgotten,  and  the  entire  people 
coalesce  in  sympathy  and  interest,  as  one  great  and 
glorious  nation — elevated  by  gospel  truth,  and  sending 
forth  streams  of  healing  to  bless  the  nations  of  earth. 

As  a  fitting  close  to  this  chapter,  a  few  quotations 
are  given  from  the  letters  of  some  personal  friends. 
Says  the  Rev.  W.  D.  Hires,  now  pastor  of  the  Upper 
Freehold  Church,  where  Mr.  Challiss  was  pastor  for 
sixteen  years :  "  I  knew  him  well  since  1 833,  and 
often  met  him  in  social  and  public  life.  I  frequently 
aided  him  and  was  aided  by  him  in  special  meetings. 
He  was  always  and  in  all  places  the  same  faithful  and 
consistent  Christian.  I  was  constrained  to  love  and 
honor  him,  not  only  for  his  work's  sake  but  for  his 
many  personal  virtues  and  his  consistent  and  manly 
zeal  as  a  minister  of  Christ." 

Rev.  E.  D.  Fendall,  for  many  years  a  pastor  in  the 
West  New  Jersey  Baptist  Association,  and  for  the  last 
fifteen  years  clerk  of  that  body,  in  some  personal  re- 
27 


316  REV.    JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

collections,  says,  "  I  first  met  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  in 
the  fall  of  the  year  1835,  at  Burlington,  N.  J.  I  was 
then  a  student  in  the  institution  located  at  that  place, 
under  the  direction  of  the  'Central  Baptist  Education 
Society,'  Rev.  Samuel  Aaron  and  Henry  K.  Green 
being  Professors.  Brother  Challiss  was  introduced  to 
tlie  young  theologians.  I  was  impressed  with  his 
personal  appearance  and  the  earnestness  and  affability 
of  his  manner  in  addressing  us.  In  the  autumn  or 
winter  of  1844,  while  I  was  pastor  of  the  Cohansey 
Baptist  Church,  and  he  the  pastor  of  the  Lower 
Dublin  Church,  which  were  two  of  the  five  constituent 
churches  of  the  Philadelphia  Baptist  Association,  I 
invited  Brother  Challiss  to  assist  me  in  'a  meeting  of 
days,'  which  he  did  with  great  acceptance  and  to  the 
profiting  of  many.  I  well  remember  the  text  of  his 
first  sermon  on  that  occasion,  'Thou,  therefore,  my 
son,  be  strong  in  the  grace  that  is  in  Christ  Jesus.' 
His  preaching  was  always  characterized  by  great 
simplicity  and  earnestness,  and  being  strictly  textual, 
was  received  and  appreciated  by  all  who  loved  the 
preaching  of  the  gospel  in  its  fullness  and  simplicity. 
The  impression  which  he  made  during  his  visit  at 
Cohansey  was  so  favorable  that  the  church  gave  him  a 
call  to  become  their  pastor  in  the  spring  of  1852,  and 
with  them  he  spent  the  last  years  of  his  pastoral  life. 
"  He   was   peculiarly   gifted   in   prayer.      I    never 


REV.  JAMES  M.   C'lIALLfSS.  317 

heard  hiiu  offer  prayer  in  the  public  assembly,  with- 
out being  impressed  with  the  solemnity  of  his  manner, 
and  the  fluency  and  appropriateness  of  his  language. 

"In  May,  1860,  we  traveled  together  to  Cincinnati, 
and  roomed  together  during  the  anniversaries,  and  I 
had  opportunity  of  knowing  him  well  in  private.  He 
was  a  good  man.  He  was  as  simple-minded  as  a  child, 
and  although  I  was  many  years  his  junior,  he  gave 
himself  into  my  care  and  was  led  by  my  directions  as 
fully  as  if  I  had  been  his  elder  brother.  He  was  on 
his  way  to  Kansas,  to  visit  his  children,  and  I  went 
with  him  to  the  depot  when  he  started  for  the  '  far 
West,'  and  well  remember  the  joy  I  felt  when  I  found 
that  he  would  have  for  a  traveling  companion,  a  minis- 
tering brother  who  knew  the  route  and  w(juld  see  him 
safely  to  the  Missouri  River." 

Rev.  A.  D.  Gillette,  D.  D.,  of  Washington,  says, 
"  I  met  Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  for  the  first  time  in  1835, 
soon  after  I  became  pastor  of  the  Fifth  Church,  Phila- 
delphia, at  tea  with  the  family  of  my  eminent  prede- 
cessor, Rev.  J.  L.  Dagg,  D.  D.  Brother  Challiss  lec- 
tured for  me  in  the  evening,  from  the  words,  '  Jesus 
Christ  and  him  crucified.'  He  concluded  his  earnest 
and  affectionate  appeal  to  his  hearers  by  repeating 
these  lines: 

'Come,  make  but  trial  of  his  love; 
»  Experience  will  decide 

How  blest  are  they,  and  only  they, 
Who  In  his  ntrnic  confide' 


31j^  lii:\'.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

"  The  truths  he  uttered  were  deeply  impressed  on 
my  mind,  and  ever  after  the  dear,  good  man  had  a 
warm  and  large  place  in  my  heart. 

"  At  the  funeral  of  Rev.  Joseph  Sheppard  in  Cam- 
den, Rev.  Dr.  Cushman  spoke  and  Brother  Challiss 
followed  in  an  address,  that  for  solemn,  earnest 
simplicity  and  tenderness  I  have  seldom  heard 
equaled. 

"  I  never  knew  a  man  more  willing  and  ready  to 
do  good  as  he  had  opportunity.  We  often  met  at 
public  gatherings,  and  although  he  was  constitutional- 
ly unobtrusive,  he  was  invariably  called  into  service, 
and  always  to  the  edification  of  those  who  enjoyed  his 
simple  ministrations.  I  knew  of  no  minister  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  whom  my  people  were  more  pleased  to 
have  among  them  than  this  dear  man  of  God.  He 
was  much  of  the  spirit  of  '  John  the  beloved,'  and  in 
so  far  had  '  the  spirit  of  Christ.' 

"  During  my  pastorate  of  the  Calvary  Baptist 
Church,  New  York,  Brother  Challiss  several  times 
visited  his  relatives,  Samuel  and  Jeremiah  Milbank, 
prominent  members  of  my  church  and  congregation, 
with  their  large  circle  of  relatives.  After  being  once 
heard  by  my  people  there,  he  was  ever  after  a  most 
welcome  visitor  and  herald  of  salvation. 

"  I  have  much  in  memory  treasured  of  this  dear 
man,    but    his    record     is    on    liigh,  his     witness     in 


RF.V.  JAMES  M.   CIIAfJJSS.  3^9 

heaven/  where  he  now  is  among  the  glories  to  which 
he  pointed  others  while  he  was  yet  with  us." 

Rev,  W.  P.  Maul,  now  pastor  of  the  Woodbury 
Baptist  Church,  but  a  near  neighbor-pastor  to  Mr. 
Challiss  during  the  last  two  years  of  his  pastoral  life, 
thus  speaks  of  him  ;  "  My  first  acquaintance  with 
Brother  Challiss  was  in  1838,  while  I  was  pastor  at 
Hatboro,  and  soon  after  he  settled  at  Lower  Dublin. 
I  was  then  holding  special  meetings  in  which  he 
rendered  me  valuable  aid.  I  shall  probably  never 
forget  one  sermon  he  preached  at  that  time  from  the 
words ;  '  We  then,  as  workers  together  with  him, 
beseech  you  also,  that  ye  receive  not  the  grace  of  God 
in  vain.'  That  sermon  was  the  means  of  much  good 
to  the  church,  and  awakened  souls  to  seek  earnestly 
the  way  of  life.  I  have  been  intimate  with  him  ever 
since,  and  have  always  found  him,  during  these 
thirty  years,  the  same  consistent  and  earnest  worker 
for  Christ ;  a  good  adviser  in  council  and  a  kind  and 
sympathizing  friend." 

Rev.  E.  C.  Ambler,  whose  efficient  services,  during 
the  great  revival  at  Cohansey,  were  gratefully  ac- 
knowledged by  both  pastor  and  people,  thus  refers  to 
him  ;  "  I  spent  several  weeks  in  a  meeting  at  old 
Cohansey  with  our  brother,  J.  M.  Challiss,  now  de- 
ceased. I  was  with  him  in  his  family ;  visited  with 
him  from  house  to  house ;  heard  his  earnest  prayers. 


;^20  ^^^-  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

not  only  for  his  own  dear  children,  but  for  all  out  of 
Christ ;  and  witnessed  his  ardent  desire  for  the 
spiritual  welfare  of  the  people  of  his  charge,  over 
whom  he  had  so  long  watched  and  prayed.  I  re- 
member well  the  joy  he  expressed  at  the  sight  of  so 
many  young  converts,  and  how  devoutly  he  thanked 
God  for  that  ingathering  of  souls. 

"  I  am  not  surprised  that  his  family  desires  to  pub- 
lish a  memoir  of  a  father  who  has  been  so  highly 
honored  in  the  pastoral  relation,  and  whose  labors 
have  been  instrumental  in  the  salvation  of  so  many 
souls.  But  he  was  beloved  not  only  by  his  family 
and  the  churches  he  so  faithfully  served,  but  by  all 
his  brethren  in  the  ministry,  who  now  greatly  miss  his 
presence  from  their  number." 

Rev.  W.  B.  Gillette,  pastor  of  the  Seventh  Day 
Baptist  Church,  at  Shiloh,  and  who  knew  Mr.  Chal- 
liss  before  he  entered  the  ministry,  thus  speaks  of  him 
in  connection  with  his  last  pastorate ;  "  In  April, 
1853,  when  I  settled  at  Shiloh  I  found  Brother  Chal- 
liss  was  my  neighbor,  then  pastor  of  the  Cohansey 
Church  and  living  at  Roadstown.  He  soon  called  to 
see  me,  and  an  intimacy  and  friendship  was  then 
formed  that  has  been  lasting.  I  have  always  con- 
sidered him  a  friend  in  whom  I  could  confide.  His 
open-heartedness,  his  sociability,  and  his  remarkable 
sympathetic   spirit   made    him    on   all     occasions    an 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  321 

agreeable  companion  and  a  faithful  fellow  laborer. 
We  found  it  convenient  often  to  exchange  pulpits  and 
thus  help  one  another.  On  one  occasion  he  was  sup- 
plying my  pulpit  and  urging  the  young  to  attend  to 
the  salvation  of  their  souls,  and  that  immediately, 
when  an  arrow  directed  by  the  Spirit  reached  the 
heart  of  a  young  lady  who  was  present.  She  was 
deeply  convicted  of  sin  and  led  to  ask  in  the  lan- 
guage of  the  jailer  '  What  must  I  do  to  be  saved  ?  She 
remained  in  her  seat  weeping  after  the  congregation 
was  dismissed.  Brother  Challiss  did  not  notice  her 
till  one  of  the  deacons  requested  him  to  speak  to  her, 
when  he  seemed  almost  as  much  overcome  with 
thankfulness  to  God  for  his  goodness  as  she  was  with 
her  conviction  of  sinfulness.  She  soon  obtained  hope 
and  united  with  God's  people." 

Dr.  Moore,  of  Bridgeton,  where  Mr.  Challiss  re- 
sided during  the  last  eight  years  of  his  life,  who  was 
his  family  physician,  says  ;  "  In  writing  a  few  lines  in 
reference  to  ray  late  esteemed  friend.  Rev.  J.  M. 
Challiss,  I  cannot  find  language  that  expresses  in  full 
my  appreciation  of  his  uniform  courtesy  and  kindness 
to  me,  during  his  residence  in  Bridgeton.  Kind  and 
obliging  as  a  neighbor  ;  full  of  sympathy  for  the  sick 
and  unfortunate,  there  are  many  who  like  myself,  feel 
deeply  the  loss  they  have  sustained  by  his  death. 

"  His  virtues,  like  his  opinions  were  positive,  never 


322  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

doubtful  or  negative.  Hence  in  matters  relating  to 
the  welfare  of  '  Church  or  State/  he  was  '  a  living 
epistle,  known  and  read  of  all  men.' 

"  As  '  City  Superintendent  of  Public  Schools/  an 
office  to  which  he  was  elected  for  several  successive 
years,  he  showed  the  same  earnestness  and  fidelity 
that  characterized  him  in  other  stations  of  life.  In 
his  official  visits  to  the  different  schools,  and  also 
when  meeting  the  scholars  on  the  streets,  it  was  his 
custom  to  inculcate  the  importance,  not  only  of  attain- 
ing to  a  good  degree  of  mental  culture,  but  also  of 
forming  good  habits  in  early  life  in  all  other  respects. 

"  In  the  pulpit  and  in  the  prayer  meeting,  whether 
he  preached  or  prayed  or  exhorted,  there  was  an  ener- 
gy of  expression  and  fervor  of  spirit,  that  often 
reached  the  conscience  and  brought  tears  to  the  eyes 
of  his  hearers.  Being  without  charge,  during  his 
residence  in  Bridgeton,  he  was  frequently  called  to 
supply  vacant  pulpits  in  churches  of  different  denomi- 
nations. A  short  time  before  his  death  an  intelligent 
Presbyterian  lady  said  to  me,  '  Mr.  Challiss  preached 
for  us  last  Sunday,  and  I  regret  that  sickness  kept 
me  at  home.  We  never  like  to  be  absent  when  he 
preaches.' 

"  Like  other  veteran  Baptist  ministers,  whose  labors 
in  New  Jersey  and  adjoining  states,  have  helped  to 
swell  the  number  of  churches  and  communicants,  he 


RHV.  JAMES  M.   OHALLJSS.  323 

lives  in  their  memory ;  and  in  our  denominational 
history  he  will  occupy  a  place  with  Brooks  and  Smal- 
ley  and  Dodge  and  Sheppard  and  others  whom  we 
and  our  children  delight  to  honor." 

Rev.  J.  F.  Brown,  D.  D.,  now  pastor  of  the  old 
Piscataway  Baptist  Church,  but  who  was  pastor  in 
Bridgeton  nearly  all  the  time  Mr.  Challiss  resided 
there,  thus  writes:  "My  acquaintance  with  Brother 
Challiss  dates  back  full  twenty  years  ago.  Since  the 
year  1860,  when  we  both  located  in  Bridgeton,  he  to 
rest  in  his  advancing  years  from  pastoral  labors,  my- 
self to  enter  upon  them  more  abundantly  as  pastor  of 
the  First  Church, — with  which  church  he  and  his  es- 
timable wife  united, — our  acquaintance  ripened  into  an 
intimacy  which  continued  up  to  the  time  of  his  death. 
During  these  years  our  intercourse  was  frequent  and 
indeed  almost  daily.  The  warmth  of  his  greetings 
whenever  and  wherever  we  met,  the  words  of  good 
cheer  he  was  wont  to  utter  at  the  close  of  a  Lord's 
Day's  ministrations,  the  deference  he  always  showed 
me  as  pastor,  the  firmness  with  which  he  stood  by  me 
in  the  dark  and  troublous  days  of  our  country, — all 
this  will  ever  be  held  in  grateful  remembrance. 

"Brother  Challiss  was  a  Christian  of  ripe  experi- 
ence. Conversant  with  the  corruption  of  his  own 
heart,  he  was  equally  conversant  with  the  grace  of 
God  that  bringeth  salvation.      He  mourned  over  in- 


324  ^EV.  JAMES  M.   CUALLISS. 

dwelling  sin,  often  in  our  prayer  meetings  giving  out 
and  singing  with  deep  feeling  the  words: 

'  Prone  to  wander,  Lonl,  I  feel  it; 

Prone  to  leave  the  God  I  love ; 
Here's  my  heart ;  Lord  take  and  seal  it ; 

Sell  it  from  thy  courts  above.' 

"He  saw  nothing  in  himself,  nothing  in  his  many 
works  of  faith  and  labors  of  love  upon  which  to  rest 
his  hope!  Yet  he  rejoiced  in  the  perfect  righteousness 
which  is  of  God  by  faith.  He  would  frequently  allude 
both  in  his  prayers  and  occasional  addresses  to  this 
truth  as  'precious  truth,'  and  as  constituting  his  oidy 
hope  of  acceptance  with  God. 

"He  was  gifted  in  prayer.  Christians  of  every 
name  loved  to  hear  him  pray,  and  I  have  even  heard 
unconverted  persons  say  with  emphasis,  'Mr.  Challiss 
ean  pray.'  His  prayers  were  almost  always  brief,  per- 
tinent, and  characterized  by  great  earnestness,  and 
often  by  much  tenderness  of  spirit.  The  people  of 
Bridgeton  will  never  forget  with  what  wrestlings  of 
soul  he  pleaded  for  his  'poor  afflicted  country'  during 
the  late  war,  particularly  when  it  was  brought  into 
some  great  emergency,  or  while  some  decisive  battle 
was  pending;  nor  with  what  fervor  he  poured  forth 
his  thanksgiving  when  any  deliverance  was  wrought, 
especially  when  peace  once  more  blessed  the  nation. 

"There  were  some  in  Bridgeton  who  took  serious 
exception  to  these  prayers  of  Brother  Challiss  for  the 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  325 

Government,  and  finally  would  not  hear  him  pray  at 
all.  He  knew  this,  but  was  no  less  fervent  and  im- 
portunate, remarking  that,  '  If  praying  for  his  country 
made  him  a  sinner  in  the  estimation  of  others,  he  must 
always  remain  a  sinner.'  It  is  perhaps  needless  to  add 
that  Brother  Challiss,  in  this  respect,  firmly  remained 
a  sinner  ! 

"Brother  Challiss  held  tenaciously  to  the  doctrines 
of  grace,  and  loved  them  with  all  his  heart.  He  well 
understood  the  relation  between  these  doctrines,  when 
rightly  apprehended  by  believers,  and  their  growth  in 
piety,  usefulness,  and  stability  in  the  Christian  life. 
Hence  while  always  an  attentive  listener  to  the  word, 
he  seemed  most  to  enjoy  those  discourses  which  in- 
volved the  discussion  of  some  of  these  foundation 
truths.  The  closing  prayer,  which  at  the  Wednesday 
evening  lecture  he  was  always  called  on  to  offer, 
showed  how  deeply  the  truth  had  affected  his  own 
heart. 

"  His  interest  in  the  home  mission  cause  was  prover- 
bial. In  our  monthly  concerts  of  prayer  he  seldom,  if 
ever,  failed  to  call  the  attention  of  the  church  to  that 
object,  and  the  fervor  of  his  prayers  and  the  earnestness 
of  his  appeals  for  it,  showed  how  deeply  he  was  inter- 
ested in  the  evangelization  of  our  country.  A  journey 
westward  as  far  as  Kansas,  in  1860,  had  impressed 
liim  with  the  growing  importance  of  this  mission,  and 


326  ^^^'   JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

his  spirit  was  stirred  within  him  as  he  saw  what  gi- 
gantic and  untiring  efforts  were  put  forth  by  Roman- 
ists and  errorists  of  every  name  to  bring  the  rapidly 
increasing  population  under  their  influence.  In  the 
spread  of  gospel  truth  through  the  agency  of  the  Home 
Mission  Society  and  kindred  organizations  he  discerned 
the  only  hope  for  the  salvation  of  these  multitudes  and 
the  preservation  of  our  free  institutions.  May  the 
Lord  of  the  harvest  raise  up  for  this  and  our  other 
societies  many  more  of  like  spirit  and  faith  and  zeal  to 
take  the  place  of  the  fathers  who  are  passing  away." 


CHAPTER    XV. 

PASSING  AWAY. 

IN  a  previous  chapter  the  current  events  in  the  life 
of  Mr.  Challiss  were  brought  down  to  within  about 
two  months  of  his  death,  and  to  a  time  when  the 
shadows  were  lengthening  and  the  indications  of  the 
coming  night  were  clearly  seen. 

In  resuming  the  narrative,  we  follow  him  only  for 
a  little  while,  as  he  passes  rapidly  through,  for  the 
last  time,  some  of  the  closing  scenes  of  his  life-work. 
He  had  now  entered  upon  the  seventieth  year  of  his 
age;  but  it  was  not  age  only  that  gave  evidence  of 
death's  approach;  for,  while  many  of  his  juniors  in 
the  ministry  had  already  finished  their  work,  some  of 
his  seniors  were  still  vigorous  and  in  active  service. 
There  were  premonitions  of  disease,  in  his  case,  of 
which  he  was  fully  conscious,  and  which  gave  charac- 
ter to  his  apprehensions  that  life  was  probably  closing, 
and  forced  the  subject  upon  his  attention;  and  he  could 
not  presume  against  such  indications. 

"For  several  years,"  says  his  physician,  "occasional 
28  327 


328  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

attacks  of  cystitis  had  made  him  familiar  with  bodily 
affliction.  Latterly  these  attacks  had  increased  in  fre- 
quency and  violence,  and  he  seemed  to  feel  a  general 
prostration.  He  frequently  complained  of  being  tired, 
and  felt  greatly  fatigued  after  a  very  little  exertion. 
He  would  often  say  pleasantly,  '  I  must  be  getting  old.' 
*  I  am  about  worn  out  and  good  for  nothing.'  '  I'm  so 
tired.'" 

He  had  not  been  in  the  enjoyment  even  of  his  usual 
health  for  more  than  two  months  previous  to  his  death. 
But  he  kept  about  most  of  the  time,  and  when  oppor- 
tunity offered,  he  continued  to  preach.  Although  fee- 
ble, he  was  always  ready  to  obey  the  command,  "Go 
preach."  In  this  work  his  heart  ever  rejoiced.  His 
last  sermon  was  preached  in  the  Second  Presbyterian 
Church,  Bridgeton,  only  a  few  weeks  before  his  death. 
Soon  after  his  removal  to  Bridgeton,  he  and  his  com- 
panion united  with  the  First  Baptist  Church,  then  un- 
der the  pastoral  care  of  Rev.  J.  F.  Brown,  D.  D.  Mr. 
Challiss  had  been  faithful  in  filling  his  place  in  the 
house  of  God,  and  especially  delighted  to  meet  his 
brethren  in  their  social  religious  meetings.  His  habit- 
ual attendance  upon  the  services  of  the  sanctuary  was 
continued  as  long  as  his  health  would  permit,  and  after 
many  would  have  thought  it  inconsistent  with  pru- 
dence or  duty.  But  he  loved  the  place  where  God's 
people  met,  and  loved  to  join  them  there  in  worship. 


REV.  JAME!S  M.   ONALLISS.  ;^29 

He  seemed  to  regard  the  continued  performance  of  re- 
ligious duties,  public  as  well  as  private,  up  to  the 
very  latest  practical  period  before  death,  as  promotive 
of  the  higliest  preparation  for  that  event.  So  he  re- 
solved to  do  with  his  might  what  his  hands  found  to 
do  until  the  night  should  come. 

Rev.  S.  C.  Dare  says :  "  In  the  winter,  immediately 
preceding  the  death  of  Mr.  Challiss,  I  spent  some  time 
M'ith  the  First  Church,  Bridgeton,  assisting  them  in 
extra  meetings.  Though  the  weather  was  cold  and 
the  streets  very  icy,  yet  Mr.  CiiallLss  was  almost  always 
present.  He  usually  occupied  a  chair  near  the  pulpit, 
and  just  at  my  right  hand.  His  presence  always 
cheered  my  heart  and  nerved  me  for  the  work.  I  felt 
that  I  had  good  help  in  Brother  ChallLss.  His  prayers 
were  earnest;  his  exhortations  were  to  the  point,  and 
full  of  spiritual  warmth  and  mental  vigor. 

"  On  one  occasion,  while  speaking  of  the  brevity  of 
human  life  and  the  probable  near  approach  of  death  to 
some  who  were  then  ]>resent,  addressing  him,  I  said, 
'Man  will  soon  rest  from  his  labor,  my  brother.'  The 
unbidden  tear  and  the  quivering  lip  indicated  that  I 
had  uttered  words  which  touched  his  heart  tenderly. 
I  found  afterwards  that  for  some  weeks  he  had  keenly 
felt  that  his  rest  was  near,  and  that  he  had  repeatedly 
expressed  this  conviction  to  his  companion.  A  few 
weeks  later,  and  about  three  weeks  before  his  death,  I 


330  J^EV.  JAMA'S  M.   CHALLISS. 

called  to  see  him  at  his  home.  He  complained  of  not 
feeling  well,  though  he  said  nothing  of  any  apprehen- 
sion of  his  rapidly  approaching  end.  After  a  pleasant 
interview  we  separated,  as  it  proved  for  the  last  time. 
I  shall  never  forget  his  face,  radiant  with  hope,  the 
warm  shake  of  his  hand,  and  the  'God  bless  you,' 
which  fell  from  his  lips." 

The  conviction  which  he  had  expressed  to  his 
brethren,  that  the  end  of  life  to  him  was  not  very  far 
distant,  continued  with  him  till  he  was  prostrated  by 
disease,  w^ien  death  was  accepted  as  inevitable,  an 
event  nigh  at  hand.  He  was  impressed  from  the  very 
first  of  this  sickness,  that  he  should  not  recover,  and 
often  alluded  to  this  as  a  conclusion  which  he  had 
cheerfully  accepted  as  the  will  of  God.  All  his  con- 
versation, his  letters,  and  his  actions  showed  that  he 
was  honest  and  positive  in  these  convictions. 

March  16th,  1868,  he  wrote  to  his  son  and 
daughter.  Dr.  Wm.  L.  Challiss  and  wife,  at  Atchison. 
This  was  his  last  letter  fo  them.  After  expressing  his 
great  gratification  in  hearing  from  them,  and  his  con- 
tinued interest  in  their  prosperity  and  happiness,  he 
added,  "My  health  is  not  so  good  as  formerly.  I 
find  old  age  creeping  on  me,  and  that  my  time,  from 
all  ap})earauce,  cannot  be  very  long  in  this  world. 
But  I  know  that  when  the  earthly  house  of  this  taber- 
nacle is  dissolved  I  have  a  building  of  God,  eternal 


HHV.  JAMES  .)/.    CI/AfJJSS.  ;>;3l 

in  the  heavens.  I  am  glad  to  hear  yon  speak  of 
your  children  as  you  do.  Ijet  them  be  objects  of 
constant  prayer  to  God,  that  they  may  be  saved. 
Dear  children,  do  try  to  run  so  that  you  may  ob- 
tain, and  be  careful  not  to  lose  sig:ht  of  the  heavenly 
prize." 

Some  weeks  previous  to  his  death,  he  adjusted  all 
his  worldly  concerns,  reviewed  his  will,  arranged  his 
papers,  gave  advice  respecting  his  family  and  his 
burial,  and  thenceforth  he  seemed  to  feel  that  his 
earthly  work  was  done,  and  to  welcome  nothing  that 
did  not  pertain  to  the  exchange  of  worlds  and  the  glory 
which  should  follow.  The  daily  paper  was  laid  aside 
for  weeks,  as  having  nothing  of  Christ  in  it.  He  did 
not  seem  to  relish  anything  but  what  was  spiritual. 
His  treasures  were  in  heaven,  and  his  conversation  was 
also  there.  After  the  first  severe  attack,  which  was 
nearly  four  weeks  before  his  death,  hopes  were  en- 
tertained that  he  would  recover.  His  companion  re- 
marked to  him  one  day,  that  she  felt  quite  encour- 
aged, and  hoped  when  the  weather  became  pleasant, 
he  would  feel  much  better.  He  replied  promptly  and 
cheerfully;  "Oh  no,  I  feel  that  I  am  failing,  and  that 
my  days  here  are  fast  numbering.  I  shall  soon  go 
the  way  of  all  the  earth.  But  'I  know  that  my  Re- 
deemer liveth/  and  'I  am  persuaded  that  he  is  able  to 
keep  that  which   I   have  committed   unto   him.'     In 

28* 


332  liEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

this  my  soul  rests  in  hope,  and  I  will  joyfully  await 
my  Saviour's  call  to  come  home." 

The  Rev.  W.  B.  Gillette,  a  valued  friend,  with 
whom  he  had  often  taken  SMeet  counsel  and  spent 
many  pleasant  hours,  thus  refers  to  an  interview  with 
Mr.  Challiss  about  this  time.  "Calling  one  day  at 
his  house,  I  found  him  ill.  I  had  a  pleasant  interview. 
He  seemed  sensible  that  his  work  was  nearly  done, 
though  he  did  not  then  apprehend  his  immediate  de- 
parture, but  felt  that  his  years  and  growing  infirmity 
told  him  that  his  future  days  were  few.  He  said,  the 
gospel  I  have  long  preached  to  others  is  a  comfort  to 
me  now.  I  find  it  good  to  put  my  trust  in  Christ. 
In  a  few  weeks  I  called  again  and  found  him  just 
passing  Jordan,  and  in  a  few  hours  he  entered  the 
spirit  world." 

Mrs.  Challiss,  in  a  letter  to  their  son,  Mr.  Joseph 
S.  Challiss,  dated  April  2d,  said ;  "One  month  ago 
pa  began  to  feel  quite  unwell,  and  took  a  little  medi- 
cine occasionally.  He  continued  so  for  near  three 
weeks;  at  which  time  he  was  taken  to  his  bed,  and 
for  one  week  was  very  ill.  Last  Sunday  the  disease 
took  a  favorable  turn,  and  he  is  improving  rapidly. 
He  sat  with  me  at  the  table  this  morning,  and  I 
hope  he  will  soon  be  able  to  go  out  and  enjoy  the 
fresh  air.  He  thought  he  would  not  recover,  and 
arranged  all  his  worldly  business.      I   feel  thankful 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  333 

that   he  has    been    spared    to     me    a    little    season 
longer." 

On  the  same  sheet  Mr.  Challiss  wrote  a  few  lines, 
which  were  the  last  he  ever  wrote  to  this  son ;  and 
they  are  here  given  in  full. 

"  Dear  Son  Joseph  : — I  was  much  pleased  with 
the  kind  spirit  your  letter  breathed  towards  us,  your 
aged  parents.  I  have  been  very  sick  for  a  week  past, 
but  am  now  so  as  to  sit  up  part  of  the  day.  I  have 
been  somewhat  impressed  that  my  time  was  drawing 
to  a  close.  But  in  prospect  of  death  I  am  calm,  and 
much  resigned  to  the  divine  will.  My  dear  son  I 
want  to  meet  you  in  heaven.  Oh !  let  me  entreat  you 
to  seek  to  meet  me  there.  This  is  worth  more  to  you 
than  all  the  wm-ld.  Oh  !  do  not  neglect  this  great  sal- 
vation, I  have  now  one  request  to  make,  and  do  not 
deny  me.  The  church  has  now  a  new  minister;  by 
all  means  go  to  meeting  with  your  family  and  hear, 
for  your  best  interests  are  at  stake.  This  will  be  to 
your  credit,  to  your  happiness,  your  best  interest." 

Two  days  after  this  he  wrote  to  his  son,  Mr.  L.  C 
Challiss  of  New  York :  "  This  is  to  say  that  I  liave 
been  very  sick  for  two  weeks  past.  I  am  now  much 
better,  and  about  the  house.  We  thought  of  sending 
for  you,  but  concluded  not,  unless  there  was  immedi- 
ate danger.  I  had  not  been  well  for  a  long  time  be- 
fore I  was  taken  down,  and   seemed  impressed  that 


^34  ^^^'   -rAMES  M.   Cr/ALLfSS. 

the  time  of  my  departure  was  at  hand.  But  God  has 
ordered  otherwise.  If  you  are  passing  through  Phila- 
delphia, I  shall  be  glad  to  see  you,  but  not  to  put  you 
to  loss  or  inconvenience.  Ma,  dear  ma,  has  been  well 
sustained  through  all  my  illness." 

This  letter  was  responded  to  by  return  mail,  and 
Mr.  Challiss  wrote  to  this  son  again  on  April  7th, 
just  eight  days  before  his  death.  This  was  the  last 
letter  he  ever  wrote;  and  it  was  fitting  that  the  last 
should  be  to  this  son,  whose  noble  and  generous  devo- 
tion to  his  parent  was  worthy  of  all  praise. 

"We  received  your  letter  this  morning.  In  reply  I 
would  say  I  am  improving  slowly.  I  am  about  all 
day,  and  walk  down  town  when  it  is  pleasant.  I  still 
hope  to  recover  my  strength  soon,  but  it  takes  an  old 
man  a  long  time  to  regain  his  strength. 

"  We  shall  be  delighted  to  see  you  at  any  time ;  but 
come,  dear  son,  when  you  can  best  leave  your  busi- 
ness. If  anything  unfavorable  should  occur,  we  will 
let  you  know.  Sickness  makes  me  feel,  more  than 
ever,  the  need  of  being  ready  '  To  depart  and  be  with 
Christ,  which  is  far  better.'  Oh  that  I  may  meet  my 
dear  son,  Luther,  there  ! 

"  We  need  well  be  thankful  for  ma's  confirmed 
health.  We  send  hearty  love,  and  sincere  thanks  for 
your  kindness  to  us." 

These  letters  were  written   in   the  interval  between 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  ;3,35 

his  first  and  last  attacks.  During  this  time  his  friends 
entertained  hopes  of  his  full  recovery  ;  and  his  own 
apprehensions  of  immediate  death  were  somewhat 
lessened.  But  in  a  few  days  he  was  taken  to  his  bed 
again,  and  for  the  last  time ;  and  now  it  was  evident 
to  all  that  the  end  was  nigh.  He  was  very  anxious 
to  see  his  children  once  more,  and  they  were  sum- 
moned to  hasten  to  the  home  of  their  dying  father. 

The  family  physician,  Dr.  Moore,  furnishes  the  fol- 
lowing statement :  "  For  several  weeks  previous  to  his 
last  illness,  there  was  manifest  in  his  conversation, 
and  in  his  demeanor,  an  increased  loveliness,  and  gen- 
tleness of  spirit,  which  showed  that  he  was  becoming 
ripe  for  the  great  change  that  waited  him,  and  that 

'All his  serious  thoughts  had  rest  in  heaven.' 

"  As  his  health  became  more  impaired,  and  disease, 
accompanied  with  intense  bodily  suffering,  prostrated 
him  upon  his  bed,  his  expressions  of  confidence  in 
God  were  so  frequent  and  emphatic,  and  were  so  hap- 
pily interwoven  with  Scripture  language,  as  to  make 
it  evident  to  all,  that, 

'  The  chamber  where  the  good  man  meets  liis  fate 

Is  privileged  beyond  the  common  walks 

Of  virtuous  life,  quite  on  the  verge  of  heaven.' 

"About  the  middle  of  March  he  was  attacked  with 
an  inflammation  of  the  liver,  from  which,  however,  he 


336  ^^^-    fAMES  31.    CHAf.LfSS. 

SO  far  recovered  as  to  be  able  to  walk  to  the  post-office 
only  one  week  before  his  death.  As  he  was  convales- 
cing from  this  affection  a  former  disease,  cystitis,  re- 
appeared with  increased  severity,  and  progressed  rap- 
idly to  a  fatal  termination.  Although  painful  to  wit- 
ness his  sufferings,  we  can  now  rejoice,  that 


'  Though  round  his  couch 
The  gathering  clouds  were  spread, 
Eternal  sunshine  settles  on  his  head.' " 


All  through  life  Mr.  Challiss  had  taken  great  inter- 
est in  sacred  music,  and  had  acquired  considerable 
proficiency  in  singing.  In  the  earlier  years  of  his 
ministry,  he  often  sang  some  appropriate  hymns  at 
the  close  of  public  service ;  especially  at  his  out-sta- 
tions, and  in  strange  neighborhoods.  In  this  service 
his  wife  often  assisted  him.  Many  still  remember 
these  occasions,  and  the  impression  received  from  this 
part  of  the  services.  Occasionally,  at  wedding  gather- 
ings, by  request,  he  would  sing  a  hymn  appropriate  to 
such  an  occasion,  affording  pleasure  to  all  present. 
But  singing  was  a  source  of  personal  religious  enjoy- 
ment to  himself.  He  took  great  delight  in  singing 
favorite  hymns  at  the  close  of  the  day.  This  habit 
increased  with  advancing  years,  and  seemed  to  afford 
him  special  pleasure  at  the  twilight  of  life.  Some- 
times he  would  sing 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  337 

"  'Tis  a  point  I  long  to  know, — 

Oft  it  causes  anxious  thought, 
Do  I  love  the  Lord,  or  no? 

Ami  his  or  am  I  not  1  " 

Then,  as  if  rebuking  the  implied  doubt,  or  seeking 
refuge  from  it,  he  would  sing, 

"Bock  of  ages,  cleft  for  me, 

Let  me  hide  myself  in  thee  ; 

Let  the  water  and  the  blood, 

From  thy  side  a  healing  flood. 

Be  of  sin  the  double  cure. 

Save  from  wrath  and  make  me  pure." 

Again,  with  soul  longing  for  liigher  attainments  in 
spiritual  life,  he  would  sing, 

"Oh,  for  a  closer  walk  with  God! 
A  calm  and  heavenly  frame ! 
A  light  to  shine  upon  the  road 
That  leads  me  to  the  Lamb !  " 

Then,  as  if  grasping  the  hand  that  would  lead  him 
safely  and  higher,  he  would  sing, 

•'  Guide  me,  0  thou  great  Jehovah, 

Pilgrim  through  this  barren  land ; 
I  am  weak,  but  thou  art  mighty  ; 
Hold  me  with  thy  powerful  hand : 
Bread  of  heaven, 
Feed  me  till  I  want  no  more." 

Again,  as  the  close  of  the  day  suggested  the  coming 
night  of  death,  and  the  Master's  summons,  he  would 
sino;  with  solemn  interest : 


338  J^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

"  When  thou,  my  righteous  Judge,  shalt  come 
To  take  thy  ransomed  people  home, 
Shall  I  among  them  stand  ? 
Shall  such  a  worthless  worm  as  I, 
Who  sometimes  am  afraid  to  die, 

Be  found  at  thy  right  hand  ?" 

Then  as  if  recognizing  his  entire  dependence  on 
Christ  and  his  full  salvation  in  him  alone ;  he  would 
sing,  with  evident  feelings  of  confidence  : 

"Jesus,  refuge  of  my  soul, 

Let  me  to  thy  bosom  fly. 
While  the  raging  billows  roll. 

While  the  tempest  still  is  high : 
Hide  me,  0  my  Saviour  hide, 

Till  the  storm  of  life  is  past ; 
Safe  into  the  haven  guide ; 

Oh,  receive  my  soul  at  last." 

Strengthened  by  the  songs  of  faith  and  trust,  he 
seemed  to  look  beyond  the  conflict,  beyond  the  river, 
and  see  the  heavenly  mansions,  and  to  gird  his  loins 
with  the  assurance  of  faith,  and  press  onward  in  his 
journey,  joyfully  singing  : 

"My  heavenly  home  is  bright  and  fair; 
Nor  pain  nor  death  can  enter  there  ; 
Its  glittering  towers  the  sun  outshine ; 
That  heavenly  mansion  shall  be  mine. 

I'm  going  home,  I'm  going  home, 
I'm  going  home  to  die  no  more ; 
To  die  no  more,  to  die  no  more, 
I'm  going  home  to  die  no  more. 

"My  Father's  house  is  built  on  high. 
Far,  far  above  the  starry  sky  : 
When  from  this  earthly  prison  free. 
That  heavenly  mansion  mine  shall  be. 
I'm  going  home,  &c." 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  339 

It  was  clearly  evident,  for  months  previous  to  his 
death,  that  he  was  maturing  for  the  better  land.  His 
prayers  and  conversation  all  seemed  to  have  a  bearing 
heavenward;  and  to  borrow  fragrance  from  his  near- 
ness to  the 

"  Sweef  fields,  beyond  the  swelling  flood, 
And  fragrant  flowers  of  immortal  bloom.  ' 

His  interest  in  the  cause  of  Christ  and  the  advance- 
ment of  his  kingdom  continued  earnest  till  the  very 
last.  He  felt  especially  anxious  for  the  church  of 
which  he  was  a  member,  then  without  a  pastor;  and 
he  prayed  earnestly  that  God  would  send  them  a  faith- 
ful and  efficient  man, — one  after  his  own  heart,  and 
that  the  church  might  arise  and  shine,  and  sinners  be 
converted. 

In  all  his  sickness  he  exhibited  much  anxiety  and 
tenderness  of  heart  in  reference  to  the  comforts  of 
those  who  were  waiting  upon  him.  He  seemed  so 
afraid  of  giving  trouble  that  he  would  sometimes  weep 
as  his  companion  and  others  were  ministering  to  his 
necessities. 

He  seemed  greatly  to  regret  leaving  his  companion, 
and  desired  her  presence  in  his  room  as  much  as  pos- 
sible. At  times  he  was  not  willing  to  have  her  out 
of  sight,  and  requested  that  she  would  sit  in  the  door- 
way, where  he  could  see  her,  instead  of  going  into  the 
adjoining  room.     He  spoke  of  her  care  and  sorrow  in 


340  ^^^-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

the  future  after  his  departure.  When  assured  by  a 
Christian  friend  that  God  would  care  for  her  and  give 
her  sustaining  grace,  and  that  their  children  would 
look  after  her  wants  and  comforts,  he  replied,  "  Oh, 
yes,  I  know  that !"  On  the  day  before  his  death  as 
she  rose  to  pass  into  another  room,  she  lingered  a 
moment  looking  at  him,  when  he  was  seen  to  weep. 
A  friend,  sitting  by  his  bed-side,  asked  him  why  he 
wept.  He  said,  "  Oh,  she  thinks  I  am  going  to  leave 
her!"  He  was  frequently  heard  in  prayer  for  his 
wife,  that  she  might  be  supported  in  this  time  of  trial, 
— "  Lord,  thou  knowest  the  grace  she  needs !  Do  thou 
comfort  and  sustain  her.  May  she  be  willing  to  com- 
mit me  to  thy  hands.  Be  thou  her  husband  and 
friend." 

He  often  referred  to  his  "  dear  children "  in  expres- 
sions of  affection  and  gratitude,  and  with  strong 
emotion.  His  love  for  them  would  sometimes  impel 
the  desire  to  remain  a  little  longer  with  them.  He 
spoke  of  their  continued  kindness,  and  particularly  of 
the  great  consideration  ^and  kindness  of  his  son 
Luther. 

"  To  feel  a  burning  solicitude  for  their  spiritual  wel- 
fare had  been  the  experience  of  his  life ;  but  during 
these  last  days  their  spiritual  interests  seemed  to  rest 
upon  his  mind  with  increasing  weight."  Even  when 
suffering   the   most    violent   paroxysms   of   pain,   he 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  341 

would  pray  earnestly,  not  for  himself  alone,  but  for 
his  family — his  absent  daughter  and  sons  and  for  his 
children's  children — that  God  would  bless  them  all, 
and  take  all  their  interests  in  his  hands.  And  espe- 
cially did  he  pray  most  earnestly  for  his  two  sons, 
who,  he  feared,  were  still  out  of  the  ark  of  safety ;  and 
when  Luther,  the  younger  of  these  sons,  arrived,  he 
clasped  him  in  his  arms,  and,  amid  tears  and  sobs, 
gave  him  a  father's  last  and  richest  counsels  and 
blessing. 

Next,  the  other  son,  Joseph,  his  first-born,  seemed 
to  claim  his  most  anxious  thoughts.  He  greatly 
desired  to  see  him,  that  he  might  add  another  last 
word  of  entreaty  and  give  him  a  father's  parting  bless- 
ing. He  was  anxious  to  see  all  his  children, 
but  only  one  arrived  before  he  passed  beyond  the 
power  of  recognition.  The  day  before  his  death  he 
frequently  inquired  for  Emma;  and  when  told  that 
she  was  coming,  and  that  William  and  George  were 
on  their  way  from  Kansas,  he  seemed  quite  overcome, 
and  repeated  again  and  again,  with  much  emotion, 
"  My  dear  children.     My  dear,  dear  children." 

"  I  arrived  at  Bridgeton,"  says  his  son  Luther,  "  the 
day  before  pa  died,  April  14th,  at  10|^  A.  M.  I 
found  him  very  low.  As  I  entered  the  room  he 
recognized  me  and  burst  into  tears,  weeping  like  a 
child  with  his  arms  around  my  neck.     After  fifteen  or 


342  HEV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

twenty  minutes  I  was  compelled  to  leave  the  room 
that  ma  might  get  him  more  calm. 

"When  the  excitement  of  seeing  me  had  somewhat 
subsided,  his  heart  seemed  to  be  set  on  seeing  Joseph, 
and  frequently  during  that  day  and  night,  he  would 
inquire,  '  Has  Joseph  come  ?'  We  assured  him,  that 
he  would  be  there  at  10|  o'clock  on  the  following 
morning.  This  seemed  to  satisfy  him  for  a  little 
while,  and  then  he  would  repeat  the  question,  '  Has 
Joseph  come?'  The  following  morning  he  watched 
the  clock  on  the  mantle  in  front  of  him  until  the  time 
for  Joseph's  coming  was  passed,  and  soon  after  he 
went  into  that  stupor  from  which  he  never  awoke." 
This  son  had  been  detained  on  the  way,  and  did  not 
arrive  till  the  early  evening,  when  the  father  had 
passed  beyond  the  power  of  recognizing  even  his  first- 
born son. 

The  love  Mr.  Challiss  manifested  for  wife  and 
children  did  not  bind  him  to  earth  or  cloud  his  view 
of  heaven.  He  was  willing  and  anxious  to  depart 
and  be  with  Christ,  and  hopefully  waited  his  welcome 
home  to  the  joys  of  his  heavenly  inheritance. 

About  the  time  Mr.  Challiss  sank  into  this  stupor, 
the  intelligence  of  his  severe  illness  and  probable  early 
death  reached  the  West  New  Jersey  Baptist  Sunday- 
school  Convention,  then  in  session  at  Salem.  The 
order   of  business    was   suspended,  and    Rev.    R.  F. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  ,'>4;> 

Young  led  these  Christian  brethren  in  special  prayer 
for  their  brother  in  Christ,  who  had  so  long  shared 
with  them  "  the  burden  and  heat  of  the  day."  It 
was  "  Resolved,  That  we  tender  to  him  our  warmest 
Christian  love,  and  the  assurance  of  our  fervent 
prayer,  that  the  comforts  of  the  Holy  Spirit  may  sus- 
tain him  in  his  affliction  and  death,  and  also  our  sym- 
pathy with  his  afflicted  family."  Mr.  H.  J.  Mulford 
was  appointed  to  convey  the  above  resolution  to  him, 
but  he  had  passed  beyond  the  reach  of  words  of  sym- 
pathy, and  was  just  entering  his  eternal  reward  when 
the  messenger  arrived  at  his  home.  At  the  evening 
session  of  the  convention,  a  "  Telegram "  was  read, 
from  Mr.  Mulford,  announcing  the  death  of  Mr.  Chal- 
liss.  The  sad  news  was  received  with  profound  sor- 
row, but  not  sorrow  without  hope.  All  felt,  that  "for 
him  to  live  was  Christ,  and  to  die  was  gain." 

During  the  few  days  that  he  lingered  after  his 
second  severe  attack,  though  his  sufferings  were  in- 
tense, with  violent  paroxysms  of  frequent  recurrence, 
his  mind  seemed  absorbed  in  the  love  of  Christ,  and 
he  expressed  the  greatest  confidence  and  hope  in  the 
blessed  Redeemer.  He  frequently  said,  "The  gospel, 
which  I  have  preached  to  others,  is  my  support  now." 
He  would  often  repeat  verses  of  hymns  or  Scripture, 
"  The  Lord  is  good ;  a  stronghold  in  the  day  of  trou- 
ble; and  he  knoweth  them  that  trust  in  him."     "The 


344  f^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Lord  is  my  Shepherd,  I  shall  not  want."  "  There  i» 
now  no  condemnation  to  them  that  are  in  Christ 
Jesus."  He  felt  his  own  unworthiness,  and  that  his 
salvation  was  all  of  grace.     He  would  exclaim, 

"  Why  was  I  made  to  hear  his  voice, 
And  enter  while  there's  room?" 

****** 
"  'Twas  the  same  love  that  spread  the  feast 
That  sweetly  forced  me  in!" 

"  Not  by  works  of  righteousness  which  I  have  done, 
but  according  to  his  mercy."  These  and  many  like 
passages  were  frequently  repeated  by  him.  He  was 
much  engaged  in  prayer,  often  praying  audibly. 
While  deeply  conscious  of  his  own  unworthiness,  and 
entire  dependence  upon  the  grace  of  God,  doubts  of 
his  acceptance  with  Christ  never  seemed  to  cross  his 
mind.  He  appeared  to  enjoy  a  full  assurance  of  hope 
in  the  merits  of  the  crucified  Redeemer. 

In  times  of  greatest  suiFering  he  would  exclaim, — 
"Though  he  slay  rae,  yet  will  I  trust  in  him."  "I 
know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth."  "  Yea,  though  I 
walk  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  I  will 
fear  no  evil."  "  O  dying  man  !  But  I  am  not  afraid 
to  die  !"  "  I  know  in  whom  I  believe."  "  Blessed 
Saviour  !  He  is  the  one  altogether  lovely.  He  is  the 
chiefest  among  ten  thousand."  "  Jesus !  Precious 
Jesus !"  "  It  is  a  blessed  thing  to  be  prepared  to  die." 
" Be  ye  also  ready."     "This  poor  man  cried  and  the 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  345 

Lord  heard  hira."  "  Bless  the  Lord,  O  my  soul;  and 
all  that  is  within  me,  bless  his  holy  name." 

The  uniform  testimony  of  all  who  were  with  him 
in  these  last  days  confirms  the  assurance,  that  he  had 
a  clear  a})prehension  of  his  coming  death  ;  that  his 
current  thoughts  rested  clearly,  fully,  and  joyfully  on 
Christ ;  and  though  a  great  sufferer,  he  was  a 
triumphant  Christian  in  his  sufferings  and  death. 

His  last  words  were  addressed  to  his  son, — "  My 
son,  my  dear  son  Luther,  '  Ask  and  you  shall  receive, 
that  your  joy  may  be  full.'  Be  prepared  to  meet  me  in 
heaven  my  son,  my  dear  son !"  After  this  he  seemed 
to  be  praying,  but  not  so  as  to  be  understood. 

This  was  Wednesday  forenoon,  April  15th.  About 
11  o'clock  he  sank  into  a  stupor,  in  which  he  con- 
tinued until  7  o'clock  in  the  evening  when  he  gently 
fell  asleep  in  Jesus. 

"A  change  from  wo  to  joy — from  earth  to  heaven. 
Death  gave  him  this — it  led  hira  calmly  where 
The  souls  that  long  ago  from  his  were  riven 

May  meet  again !  Death  answers  many  a  prayer. 
Bright  day  shine  on  !  be  glad  ;  days  brighter  far 
Are  stretched  before  his  eyes  than  those  of  mortals  are  !" 
"Is  that  a  death-bed,  where  the  Christian  lies  ? 
Yes  ! — But  not  his  :  'Tis  death  itself  there  dies." 

Before  passing  to  the  closing  chapter,  we  pause  a 
moment  here  to  look  in  upon  the  sorrowing  group 
gathered  at  the  residence  of  the  departed,  and  reluct- 
antly and  sadly  waiting  the  time  of  his  burial. 


346  fiEV   JAMES  M.   CriALLFSS. 

Cold  in  the  embrace  of  death,  the  husband  and 
father  lies  all  unconscious  now  of  the  sorrows  of  his 
loved  ones.  The  widowed  wife  and  mother,  while 
bowing  submissively  to  the  will  of  God,  can  but  re- 
view again  and  again  the  journey  of  forty-five  years 
of  her  life-pilgrimage,  which  she  had  so  pleasantly 
traveled  with  him  who  is  now  dead,  and  who  had  left 
her  to  travel  the  last  and  more  weary  part  of  the  pil- 
grimage alone.  It  is  not  in  the  spirit  of  repining, 
— not  complaining  against  God, — not  doubting  his 
wisdom  and  love,  but  accepting  the  sad  pleasure  of  a 
bereaved  heart,  she  lives  over  again  the  life  which 
had  so  pleasantly  passed  in  the  companionship  of  her 
husband.  She  goes  away  back  to  the  rose-tinted 
scenes  of  their  early  life ;  when  with  maidenly  coy- 
ness, she  received  from  her  youthful  and  abashed 
admirer,  the  declaration  of  his  love,  and  promised  to 
be  his.  She  stands  beside  him  again  as  the  blushing: 
bride,  when  they  gave  the  mutual  pledge  of  love  and 
fidelity  as  husband  and  wife  until  death  should 
separate  them.  She  goes  with  him  to  their  first  home, 
and  feels  anew  her  anxiety  and  trust  as  when  she 
first  shared  the  care  and  pleasure  of  a  pastor's  life. 
She  seems  to  feel  again  the  strange  joy  of  a  young 
mother's  heart,  as  when  their  first-born  came  to  grace 
their  household.  Thus  she  passed  over  all  the  way 
they  had  journeyed  together,  pausing  at  each  scene  of 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  ;J47 

touching  tenderness  or  special  interest,  and  watered 
freely  with  her  tears  these  spots  of  sacred  memory  as 
she  realized  that  the  companion  who  had  so  faithfully 
and  tenderly  shared  in  all  the  interest  of  these  many 
years,  was  now  separated  from  her  by  death.  And 
although  her  faith  accepted,  that  this  parting  was 
gain  to  him,  her  heart  felt  keenly  that  it  was  loss  to 
her.  Chide  her  not  that  she  weeps  ;  but  rather  thank 
God  that  she  has  the  comfort  of  tears. 

Here,  too,  the  children  are  gathered  from  their  dis- 
tant homes ;  but  how  different  from  all  former  gather- 
ings at  their  father's  house !  They  had  hastened 
hither  as  soon  as  apprised  of  their  father's  critical  ill- 
ness, hoping  to  see  him  again  before  he  died.  Only 
two  of  them  were  permitted  this  privilege,  and  one  of 
these  was  too  late  to  be  recognized.  Death's  work 
was  completed  while  the  others  were  still  on  their  jour- 
ney. 

But  now  they  are  all  here  ;  and  the  hand  and  heart 
that  had  always  welcomed  them  are  cold  in  death.  A 
father's  warm  greetings  and  earnest  words  of  sympa- 
thy can  be  theirs  no  more,  only  as  memory  cherishes 
and  repeats  the  loving  words  and  acts  of  the  departed. 
How  many  precious  memories  crowd  upon  these  chil- 
dren,— of  a  father's  love  and  care  in  childhood ;  his 
guidance  and  anxiety  in  youth  ;  his  interest  and  sym- 
pathy in  the  struggles  of  their  manhood ;  and  his  con- 


348  ^^^-  JAMES  31.   CIIALLISS. 

tinued  fidelity  to  their  spiritual  good,  even  till  his 
death.  Well  may  they  mourn  the  loss  of  such  a 
father. 

Here,  too,  are  gathered  a  few  kind  and  faithful 
friends,  in  sympathy  with  these  afflicted  ones,  and  in 
sorrow  for  their  own  loss. 

The  time  for  family  worship  has  come — the  book  of 
God,  long  used  at  this  service  is  there — but  the  voice 
accustomed  to  lead  in  these  devotions  is  now  silent  in 
death.  Who  among  this  sorrowing  group  will  attempt 
to  command  the  voice  in  reading  the  words  of  prom- 
ise and  leading  in  prayer?  Woman,  "last  at  the 
cross,  and  earliest  at  the  grave."  A  Christian  woman 
accepts  the  tender  service,  and,  in  the  father's  stead, 
leads  the  devotions  of  the  afflicted  family. 

In  1829,  when  the  New  Jersey  Baptist  Association 
was  in  session  at  Mount  Holly,  Mr.  Challiss  preached, 
one  evening,  at  a  school-house  a  few  miles  from  the 
town.  Near  this  house,  there  resided  a  Quaker  fami- 
ly, whose  little  daughter  asked  permission  of  her  pa- 
rents to  attend  this  Baptist  meeting.  Her  request  was 
granted.  She  listened  to  the  sermon  with  strange  in- 
terest. Her  impressions  were  deepened  by  the  singing 
of  a  hymn,  at  the  close  of  the  service,  by  Mr.  and  Mrs. 
Challiss.  She  returned  home  deeply  conscious  of  her 
need  of  Christ.  After  some  time,  she  found  peace  in 
believing,  and  finally  united  with  the  Baptist  church. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  349 

She  ever  cherished  a  grateful  remembrance  of  that 
meeting  at  the  school-house,  and  was  a  fast  friend  to 
those  who  were  instrumental  in  her  conversion.  As 
soon  as  she  heard  of  the  death  of  Mr.  Challiss,  she 
hastened  to  the  afflicted  family,  feeling  that  she,  her- 
self, had  lost  a  father  and  brother;  and  now  the  little 
Quaker  girl  of  forty  years  ago,  but  the  Christian  ma- 
tron of  to-day,  turns  the  sacred  pages  to  some  words 
of  promise  and  comfort,  and  reads  to  these  sorrowing 
ones;  and  then  with  trembling  voice,  but  earnest 
pleadings,  leads  them  at  the  throne  of  grace.  But  the 
scene  is  too  sacred  for  mortal  eyes. 

We  leave  them  there ; 
Bowed  at  the  mercy  seat, 
Alone  with  God  in  prayer. 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

IN     MEMORY     OF     THE     DEPARTED. 

"  Of  them,  who  rapt  in  earth  are  cold 
No  more  the  shining  day  shall  view, 
Should  many  a  tender  tale  be  told, 
For  many  a  tender  thought  is  due." 

IN  this  closing  chapter,  it  is  proposed  to  continue  the 
narrative  until  the  grave  closes  over  the  departed ; 
and  then  to  gather  up  a  few,  of  the  many  expressions 
given  in  appreciation  of  his  worth  and  in  sorrow  for 
his  loss,  and  lay  them  upon  his  grave  as  "  Tributes  to 
his  memory." 

The  news  of  his  death  was  received  with  profound 
sorrow  and  regret,  not  only  in  the  city  of  Bridgeton 
where  he  had  lived,  but  throughout  the  state,  and 
wherever  he  was  known ;  and  by  Christians  of  every 
name.  The  following  allusion  was  made  to  the  death 
of  Mr.  Challiss  in  the  first  number  of  the  "Bridgeton 
Chronicle,"  issued  after  that  event. 

"  It  is  with  sincere  regret  that  we  have  heard  of  the 
death  of  this  estimable  gentleman,  whose  name  has 
been  identified  for  so  many  years  with  the  best  and 
350 


li£V.  JAMES  M.   CHALLTSS.  351 

highest  interests  of  Bridgeton  and  the  surrounding 
country.  Mr.  Challiss  was  a  devoted  and  earnest 
preacher  of  tlie  gospel,  a  warm  friend,  an  ardent 
patriot,  and  a  preacher  and  speaker  of  great  accept- 
ance. His  character  may  be  summed  up  in  one 
phrase — simple-minded  goodness ;  his  nature  was  so 
sweet,  his  words  so  full  of  wisdom  and  fatherly  coun- 
sel, his  heart  so  warm,  his  feelings  so  benevolent,  his 
appearance  in  late  years  so  calm  and  dignified  and  pa- 
triarchal, that  instinctively  we  all  loved  him." 

The  time  for  his  l)urial  hastened  on.  Every  pre- 
paration which  love  prompted  and  good  taste  allowed 
was  carefully  and  fully  made.  Many  friends  gathered 
from  a  distance  and  from  neighboring  churches  to  be 
present  at  the  funeral  services, 

A  very  full  and  detailed  account  of  these  services 
appeared  in  the  Bridgeton  papers  ;  and  from  these  we 
shall  make  some  l)rief  extracts  in  reference  to  the 
general  services. 

"  The  funeral  services  of  the  late  Rev.  James  M. 
Challiss  were  held  in  the  First  Baptist  Church, 
Bridgeton,  on  Monday  forenoon  last,  and  the  church 
was  filled  by  a  large  and  sympathizing  audience. 

"At  about  ten  o'clock  a  number  of  clergymen  took 
their  places  on  the  platform,  amongst  whom  were, 
Rev.  E.  M.  Barker,  of  Cedarville,  Rev.  Chas.  Kain, 
of  Jacobstown,  Rev.  J.  R.  Murphy,  of  Salem,  Revs. 


352  REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Caspar  R.  Gregory,  H.  M.  Stuart,  and  A.  E.  Ballard, 
of  Bridgeton,  Rev.  Walter  B.  Gillette,  of  Shiloh,  and 
Rev.  Thos.  G.  Wright,  of  Roadstown.  Sixteen  Bap- 
tist churches  were  represented,  and  many  ministers 
were  present  belonging  to  other  denominations. 

"The  services  were  introduced  by  Rev.  Mr.  Gregory 
of  the  First  Presbyterian  Church,  Bridgeton,  who 
gave  out  the  hymn, — 

Why  do  we  mourn  depai-ting  friends  ? 

four  stanzas  of  which  were  sung.  Then  followed  the 
reading  of  the  fifth  chapter  of  Second  Corinthians,  by 
Rev.  Mr.  Gillette,  of  the  Seventh  Day  Baptist  Church, 
Shiloh,  after  which  prayer  was  offered  by  Rev.  Mr. 
Kain.  Rev.  Mr.  Stuart,  of  the  Episcopal  Church, 
Bridgeton,  then  announced  the  hymn, 

'  On  Jordan's  stormy  banks  I  stand,' 

four  stanzas  of  which  were  sung." 

Rev.  Mr.  Barker  preached  the  funeral  sermon, 
according  to  the  request,  made  to  him  by  the  deceased, 
only  a  few  weeks  before  his  death  while  they  were 
attending  the  funeral  of  an  old  friend.  Rev.  William 
Bacon. 

"  Mr.  Barker  said :  '  If  any  thing  will  move  the 
heart  of  the  Christian  minister,  it  is  the  triumphant 
death  of  a  fellow-laborer ;  and  the  words  to  which  I 
would  direct   your  attention  on  the  present  occasion. 


in<:v.  .iAMi:s  m.  c/jalljss.  ;353 

in  connection  with  the  death  of  such  a  servant  of  God, 
are  found  in  the  Epistle  of  Paul  to  the  Philippians,  i. 
21-23. — "  For  to  me  to  live  is  Christ,  and  to  die  is 
gain.  For  I  am  in  a  strait  betwixt  two ;  having  a 
desire  to  depart,  and  to  be  with  Christ,  which  is  tiir 
better."  These  words  not  only  expressed  the  feelings 
of  the  inspired  apostle,  but  the  sentiments  of  the  faith- 
ful servant  of  Cod  in  all  ages  of  the  world  and  under 
all  cir('umstanco.s.' 

"The  sermon  discussed  the  state  of  mind  with 
which  Paul  viewed  both  life  and  death,  and  defined 
the  position  of  a  Christian  minister,  to  be  one  that 
looked  upon  life  as  a  blessing,  because  of  its  value  to 
the  cause  of  Christ ;  that  viewed  death  as  repulsive 
and  not  to  be  desired,  yet  which  could  be  accepted  in 
preference  to  life,  because  it  introduced  him  to  a  state 
of  blessedness  far  superior  to  anything  attainable  upon 
earth.  Life  and  death  were  two  good  things,  and  the 
true  ministtu*  was  often  in  a  strait  which  to  choose 
between  tliem.  These  ideas  were  applied  with  much 
felicity  to  the  character  of  Mr.  Challiss,  whose  life 
and  character  were  justly  and  tenderly  ])ortrayed. 

"  In  (concluding,  the  speaker  said,  '  Thus  })assed 
away  one  whose  life  was  spent  in  holy  toil,  and  whose 
death  is  victory.  May  this  death  secure  for  his 
children  that  for  which  he  spent  so  much  of  his  life. 
The  death  of  a  good  man,  especially  a  pious  father,  is 


;j54  i^I-^^'-  -fAMES  M.    CBALLISS. 

a  legacy  to  surviving  friends  of  more  value  than  the 
gold  of  Ophir.  He  was  not  a  king  nor  president  of  a 
republic,  but  he  has  borne  nobler  honors,  and  wears  a 
brighter  crown  than  potentates  on  earth. 

"'Thus,  my  brethren  in  the  ministry,  we  are  passing 
away.  He  is  gone  whither  we  are  journeying  soon. 
May  we,  like  him,  fight  the  good  fight,  finish  our 
course,  and  receive  from  the  Lord  a  crown  of  right- 
eousness. And  may  God,  of  his  infinite  mercy,  sanc- 
tify to  all  here,  the  dispensation  of  his  word  and 
providence,  that  we  may  be  wise  unto  salvation 
through  faith  in  Jesus  Christ.' 

"  Rev.  Dr.  Mui-phy,  of  Salem,  followed  with  a  short 
address,  giving  some  reminiscences  of  Mr.  Challiss' 
early  Christian  life  and  entrance  upon  the  ministry,  as 
recalled  by  the  old  people  of  Salem,  where  his  child- 
hood and  youth,  and  early  Christian  life  were  spent, 
and  where  he  was  licensed  to  preach  the  gospel.  He 
then  added,  'Our  departed  brother  has  written  his 
own  epitaph.  He  has  written  it  in  the  hearts  of 
many  who  now  have  hope  in  Christ,  who  regard  him 
as  the  instrument  in  the  hands  of  God  of  leading  them 
from  darkness  into  light  and  liberty ;  in  the  experi- 
ence of  many  souls  now  in  glory ;  in  the  memory  of 
the  living  who  know  the  toils  of  his  life  and  the 
fidelity  of  his  ministry ;  he  has  also  Avritten  it,  as  he 
desired  it  should  be  inscribed  on  the  stone  that  marks 


Rh:V.   JAMKS  M.    OIIALfJSS.  355 

his  resting-place.  I  hold  in  my  hand,  in  the  writing 
of  that  hand  which  is  now  cold  in  death,  this  epitaj)h 
prepared  by  himself. 

"'In  memory  of  Rev.  J.M.  Challiss,  who  departed 
this  life  after  almost  a  half  century  spent  in  the  minis- 
try of  the  word,  in  four  different  fields  of  labor  :  Upper 
Freehold,  Lower  Dublin,  Marlton,  and  the  First  Co- 
liansey  Baptist  Church.  He  was  born  in  Philadel- 
phia, on  the  4th  of  January,  1799  ;  baptized  and 
licensed  to  preach  by  the  Salem  Baptist  Church  ;  died 
in  Bridgeton, 

.Tesus  is  miae  and  I  am  his. 
What  can  I  wish  beside  ; 
My  soul  shall  at  the  fountain  live 
When  all  the  streams  are  dried.' 

"  What  a  legacy  has  our  brother  left  us !  We 
thank  God  for  his  long  and  useful  life  as  a  devoted 
Christian  minister.  His  memory  is  fragrant  to  us 
who  are  here  to-day  as  ministers  of  the  gospel.  He 
being  dead  yet  speaketh  to  us.  For  many  years  some 
of  us  have  been  accustomed  to  meet  this  dear  brother 
at  our  annual  gatherings,  and  receive  the  warm  greet- 
ings of  his  kind  heart,  and  the  pressure  of  his  fatherly 
hand — for  he  had  a  hand  that  was  fatherly  in  its  jjres- 
sure.  But  to-day  we  look  upon  his  face  for  the  last 
time ;  his  image  will  remain  in  our  hearts,  his  works 
will  live  after  him.     Let  us  all  seek  to  follow  him,  as 

he  followed  Christ." 

30* 


35G  REV.  JAMES  M.   CT/ALLJSS 

"  Rev.  Mr.  Ballard,  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church,  offered  the  closing  prayer,  after  which  Rev. 
T.  G.  Wright  read  the  hymn  which  had  been  the 
favorite  of  Mr.  Challiss  toward  the  close  of  life, — 

'  My  heavenly  home  is  briglit  and  fair, 
Nor  pain  nor  death  can  enter  there.' 

"  At  the  close  of  the  services,  about  one  hundred  of 
the  children  of  the  jjublic  schools  passed  and  viewed 
the  remains,  after  which  the  congregation  took  their 
last  look  upon  the  well-known  features ;  and  then  the 
body  was  conveyed  to  the  Baptist  burial  ground,  and 
there  deposited,  in  a  sure  and  certain  hope  of  a  bliss- 
ful immortality  beyond  the  grave." 

The  benediction  was  pronounced  by  the  Rev.  W. 
R.  McNeil,  of  Bridgeton,  and  the  family  and  friends 
turned  away  from  the  grave  of  this  faithful  servant  of 
God,  sorrowing  most  of  all  that  they  should  see  his 
face  no  more. 

In  the  Bridgeton  Baptist  Cemetery,  near  the  north- 
east corner  of  the  Pearl  Street  Baptist  Meeting  House, 
on  a  lot  now  beautifully  enclosed,  and  in  a  vault  pre- 
pared for  its  reception,  the  body  sleeps,  in  death 
till  the  Master  bid  it  wake.  A  chaste  and  sub- 
stantial memorial  stone,  bearing  the  inscription  pre- 
pared by  the  departed,  marks  the  resting-place  of  his 
dust. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  357 

We  linger  here  a  little  longer  to  lay  upon  his  grave 
some  of  the  oiferings  which  esteem  and  love  continued 
to  bring,  as  grateful  and  fragrant  tributes  to  his  mem- 
ory. 

The  following  extract  is  from  an  editorial  notice  of 
Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss,  which  appeared  in  "  The  Pio- 
neer," of  April  24th,  1868  ;  from  which  we  have  al- 
ready quoted.  It  shows  the  position  Mr.  Challiss 
held  in  the  estimation  of  the  citizens  of  Bridgeton, 
and  it  is  given  as  a  just  and  discriminating  tribute  to 
his  memory : 

"  A  sorrowful  surprise  awaited  the  citizens  of 
Bridgeton  on  Thursday  of  last  week,  in  the  announce- 
ment of  the  decease  of  the  beloved  minister  whose 
name  appears  at  the  head  of  this  article. 

"  He  had  for  several  years  past  so  moved  among  us 
with  his  pleasant  presence,  so  ardently  interested  him- 
self in  all  things  that  were  lovely  and  of  good  report 
among  us,  so  linked  himself  to  the  entire  community 
by  all  the  kindliest  feelings  which  bind  us  to  each 
other,  that  the  statement  of  his  death  was  felt  as  if  it 
had  been  a  brother.  Mr.  Challiss,  as  a  Baptist  clergy- 
man, was  ardent  and  decided  in  his  denominational 
preferences  and  convictions,  yet  entertained  the  most 
thorough  respect  for  the  religious  preferences  of  others 
where  they  differed  from  his  own,  and  in  this  way  had 


358  ^^'f'-  JAMES  M.   an  ALL  J  ss. 

secured  the  love  of  all  the  clergymen  of  the  different 
religious  persuasions  in  the  city  and  vicinity.  His 
kindly  heart  overflowed  all  his  sentiments,  and  all 
Christian  and  moral  movements  found  in  him  an  ear- 
nest coadjutor.  He  evinced,  both  with  voice  and  pen, 
a  deep  interest  in  the  temperance  cause,  and  there  is  no 
man  in  the  country  whose  loss  in  this  direction  would 
be  more  deeply  felt  than  Mr.  Challiss.' — He  always 
felt  a  large  regard  for  the  education,  both  secular  and 
religious,  of  the  children,  and  for  several  years  was 
the  superintendent  of  the  public  schools  in  the  city, 
which  office  he  filled  to  the  general  acceptance  of  the 
people;  and  indeed  in  all  respects,  both  as  a  citizen 
and  Christian  minister,  he  deserved  and  received  the 
appreciative  regard  of  the  entire  community.  His 
funeral  services  took  place  on  Monday  morning  of  this 
week,  from  the  First  Baptist  Church  of  this  city,  with 
which  he  had  for  the  last  few  years  been  connected  as 
a  retired  minister.  Although  the  day  was  a  stormy 
one,  the  clergymen  of  the  denomination  from  all  the 
towns  in  the  vicinity  were  in  attendance,  and  the  large 
edifice  was  filled  with  people  who  were  present  to  tes- 
tify their  respect  for  the  deceased." 

The  following  resolutions^  which  were  published  at 
the  time,  according  to  the  request  of  those  adopting 
them,  are  accepted  as  a  tribute  to  the  memory  of  Rev. 


KEY.  JAMES  M.    CHALLISS.  359 

Mr.  Challiss,  from  those  who  sustained  church  rela- 
tions with  him  during  the  last  eight  years  of  his  life, 
and  from  those  who  enjoyed  his  last  stated  labors. 

"  At  a  regular  church  meeting  of  the  First  Baptist 
Church,  of  Bridgeton,  held  April  16th,  1868,  a  com- 
mittee was  appointed  to  draft  resolutions  and  present 
to  the  church  in  relation  to  the  death  of  our  beloved 
brother.  Rev.  James  M.  Challiss,  and  they  reported 
the  following  resolutions  which  were  unanimously 
adopted  on  the  evening  of  May  8th : 

"Whereas,  Our  beloved  brother.  Rev.  James  M. 
Challiss,  departed  this  life  April  15th,  1868,  and  this 
church  desires  to  express  its  condolence  with  the  be- 
reaved family;  therefore 

^'Resolved,  That  we  tender  our  warmest  sympathies 
to  our  bereaved  sister  and  her  family,  believing  our 
loss  to  be  his  eternal  gain. 

^^  Resolved,  That  we  miss  him  from  the  public  and 
private  meetings  of  the  church,  where  he  always 
manifested  the  greatest  interest  for  this  church; 

"Resolved,  That  his  Christian  graces,  his  earnest, 
devoted  life,  his  untiring  service  in  the  cause  of  our 
blessed  Saviour,  are  all  worthy  of  our  imitation ; 

'^Resolved,  That  his  example  as  a  Christian  minis- 
ter, in  season  and  out  of  season,  showed  his  interest  in 
the  truths  he  so  long  preached  and  practiced." 

At  a  meeting  of  the  Mount  Holly  Baptist  Church, 


;}(J0  I'l'-y-  -fAMES  M.    CI/AL/JSS 

held    May  10th,  1868,  the   following    i)reamble    and 
resolutions  were  unanimously  adopted : 

"Whereas,  The  death  of  the  late  Rev.  James  M. 
Challiss  calls  for  a  memorial  expression  on  the  part  of 
this  church,  with  whom  were  spent  almost  his  last 
energies  in  stated  pulpit  ministrations;  therefore 

"Besolved,  That  in  the  death  of  this  venerable  ser- 
vant of  God,  so  long  identified  with  the  interests  of 
evangelical  religion  and  the  cause  of  education  in  New 
Jersey,  the  State  has  lost  an  honored  citizen,  and  the 
Church  a  beloved  and  useful  minister. 

"Resolved,  That  while  many  mourn  this  stroke,  we 
as  a  church  feel  especially  called  upon  to  record  our 
sorrow,  when  we  bring  to  mind  the  edifying  sermons, 
replete  with  consolation  to  Christians,  with  solemn 
warnings  and  tender  appeals  to  the  unconverted, 
uttered  by  his  voice  from  our  pulpit  for  twenty  consec- 
utive Lord's  Days  during  last  summer  and  autumn,  in 
the  absence  of  our  pastor.  Nor  can  we  forget  the  re- 
peated evidences  of  his  interest  in  our  Sunday  School, 
and  especially  in  the  Bible  class  of  young  men. 

"Resolved,  That  this  church  will  long  remember 
with  peculiar  emotion  the  occasion  of  his  last  presence 
■svith  us,  when  our  pastor,  with  marked  warmth  of 
manner,  once  and  again,  on  his  own  behalf  and  in  the 
name  of  the  church,  thanked  his  venerable  brother  for 
the  acceptable  manner  in  which  he  had  filled  his  place, 


REV.  JAMES  M.    CHALLTSS.  361 

and  for  the  deep  interest  he  had  manifested  in  the  wel- 
fare of  the  church. 

"  The  few  remarks  added  on  that  occasion  by  our  de- 
parted father  in  Israel  were  full  of  tender  feeling,  and 
we  lingered  on  the  threshold,  sorrowing  most  of  all 
that  we  should  see  his  face  no  more. 

^^  Resolved,  That  our  estimate  of  the  exemplaiy  and 
lovely  character  of  the  deceased  may  be  embodied  in 
the  Avords  of  one  who  long  witnessed  his  daily  walk 
and  conversation ;  *  His  character  may  be  summed  up 
in  one  phrase — simple-minded  goodness.  His  nature 
was  so  sweet,  his  words  so  full  of  wisdom  and  fatherly 
counsel,  his  heart  so  warm,  his  feelings  so  benevolent, 
his  appearance  in  late  years  so  calm  and  dignified  and 
patriarchal,  that  instinctively  we  all  loved  him.'  To 
this  we  would  add  that  in  him  were  exemplified,  in  an 
eminent  degree,  those  cardinal  elements  of  true  Chris- 
tian character — love  to  God  and  love  to  man. 

^^  Resolved,  That  our  warmest  sympathies  are  with 
the  widow  and  family  of  our  deceased  friend  in  this 
hour  of  affliction;  and  our  earnest  prayer  is  that  when 
they  too  shall  be  called  to  exchange  the  fleeting  scenes 
of  earth  for  the  unchanging  realities  of  the  spirit 
world,  they  may  join  him  where  he  is  even  now 
ascribing  praises  unto  God  and  the  Lamb." 

But  it  was  not  from  individuals  and  single  churches 
only  that  these  expressions  of  worth  and  sorrow  came ; 


362  ^^EV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

Conventions  of  ministers  and  other  delegates,  in  their 
own  name,  and  in  the  name  of  the  churches  they  rep- 
resented freely  sent  their  offerings  of  tribute  to  his 
memory. 

The  death  of  Mr.  Challiss  was  officially  announced 
to  the  Executive  Board  of  the  New  Jersey  Baptist 
Convention,  at  the  quarterly  meeting,  held  at  Hights- 
town.  May  8th,  1868.  By  common  consent  the  regu- 
lar order  of  business  was  suspended,  and  Kev.  H.  F. 
Smith,  Secretary  of  the  Board,  presented  the  following 
paper,  which,  after  appropriate  remarks  by  several 
members  of  the  Board,  was  unanimously  adopted. 

"Whereas,  Our  Great  Master  has  lately  called  to 
himself  our  fellow-laborer,  James  M.  Challiss,  for 
twenty  years,  and  at  his  death,  a  Vice-President  of 
this  Convention. 

"Resolved,  That  this  Board  pungently  feel  the  loss 
of  his  presence,  ripe  experience,  wise  counsel,  and 
manifold  labors  with  us  in  the  cause  of  State  Evange- 
lization. 

'^Resolved,  That  while  we  bow  submissively  to  this 
dispensation,  we  recognize  the  divine  voice  callhig  us 
to  renewed  devotedness  in  the  work,  and  we  solemnly 
pledge  ourselves  to  emulate  the  interest  of  our  depart- 
ed and  departing  fathers  in  the  growth  and  prosperity 
of  feeble  bands  of  brethren  pledged  to  the  upholding 
of  the  whole  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus." 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  3^3 

The  West  New  Jersey  Baptist  Association,  with 
which  Mr.  Challiss  was  connected  for  about  forty  years 
of  his  ministry,  was  held  in  September,  1868,  in  the 
Pearl  Street  Baptist  Meeting  House,  Bridgeton,  near 
which  his  remains  were  entombed.  Several  churches 
called  attention  to  his  death,  in  their  letters  to  the 
Association,  in  suitable  expressions  of  their  apprecia- 
tion of  his  worth  and  work,  and  their  sorrow  for  his 
loss. 

The  Committee  on  Obituaries  made  special  refer- 
ence to  his  death.  After  referring  to  some  of  the  lead- 
ing points  in  his  life  and  ministry,  and  the  success 
which  had  attended  his  labors,  they  added:  "His  last 
illness  though  brief,  was  most  painful,  but  throughout 
his  intense  sufferings,  he  was  abundantly  sustained  by 
the  presence  of  his  Redeemer.  On  April  15,  1868,  in 
his  70th  year,  his  eventful  life  ended,  and  he  entered 
that  rest  which  is  glorious  in  its  peace,  its  purity,  its 
joy,  its  eternity.  Beautiful  and  fitting  as  is  the  mon- 
ument erected  to  his  memory  in  the  cemetery  adjoin- 
ing this  house  of  God,  his  praise  in  the  churches,  his 
place  in  the  hearts  of  his  brethren  in  the  ministry,  is  a 
still  better  tribute  to  his  worth,  and  a  more  enduring 
memorial  to  his  honor." 

This  report  was  followed  by  remarks  from  a  num- 
ber of  ministers  and  others,  who  gave  expression  to 

their  high  estimate  of  the  character  and  labors  of  the 

81 


364  R^V-  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS. 

departed,  and  recalled  many  pleasant  reminiscences  of 
his  life. 

"  I  remember,"  said  one,  "  the  first  sermon  Brother 
Challiss  preached  in  the  old  Cohansey  meeting-house. 
It  was  nearly  fifty  years  ago.  I  was  a  boy,  but  not 
without  some  anxious  thoughts.  He  was  young,  just 
entering  the  ministry,  and  full  of  zeal  and  fervor.  I 
remember  well  the  first  hymn  he  gave  out,  and  his 
text  and  the  sermon.  The  impressions  made  upon 
my  heart  by  that  service  have  never  been  forgotten  in 
all  these  years,  and  they  are  vividly  recalled  to-day." 

Said  another,  "  He  was  my  nearest  neighbor,  as  a 
pastor,  in  my  first  settlement.  He  gave  me  'the 
charge '  at  my  ordination,  and  his  continued  counsels 
were  of  great  value  to  me.  I  esteemed  him  much, — 
I  loved  him  more — he  was  so  kind,  so  fatherly." 

"Brother  Challiss  in  the  pulpit,"  said  another,  "is 
among  my  earliest  recollections.  I  remember  him 
distinctly  from  the  time  I  was  seven  years  old.  I 
had  a  kind  of  holy  reverence  for  him,  and  when  ] 
would    hear  him  sing, 

'  Am  I  a  soldier  of  tlie  cross?' 

I  thought  heaven  was  almost  begun  on  earth.  Such 
were  my  childhood  thoughts  of  him;  but  I 
have  always  regarded  him  as  a  model  man  and  a 
model  Christian  pastor, — faithful  to  God's  truth  and 
faithftil  to  the  souls  of  men." 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  365 

Said  a  layman,  "  I  have  known  Brother  Challiss 
and  his  work  for  many  years.  No  man  in  this  Asso- 
ciation was  held  in  higher  esteem.  I  loved  him  for 
his  Christian  spirit,  for  his  consistent  example,  for  his 
untiring  zeal,  and  his  faithful  care  of  the  flock  over 
which  he  was  placed." 

The  New  Jersey  Baptist  State  Convention  met  at 
Trenton  a  few  weeks  later,  and  added  their  tribute  to 
his  memory,  from  which  the  following  is  quoted. 

"  Last  year,  with  accustomed  punctuality,  and  a 
face  radiant  with  Christian  joy,  our  venerable,  much 
loved  Father  Challiss  met  with  us,  and  partici- 
pated, as  usual,  in  our  deliberations.  The  mention  of 
his  name  almost  prompts  us  to  reach  out  for  his  warm 
hand-grasp ;  but — he  is  not  here — he  sits  in  the  great 

Convention  of  Conquerors His 

name  appears,  as  a  member,  in  the  record  of  our  first 
Board  meeting,  October  20,  1830,  and  from  that  time 
till  his  departure  few  marks  of  absence  are  found 
against  his  name.  For  twenty  years,  and  at  his  death, 
he  was  Vice-President  of  the  Convention. 

"  His  whole  ministry  covered  a  period  of  more  than 
forty  years,  during  which  he  was  instrumental  in 
bringing  many  souls  to  Christ,  some  of  whom  now  oc- 
cupy positions  of  prominence  and  usefulness  in  our 
churches.  Without  attempting  to  portray  particularly 
our  dear  brother's  personal  and  official  character,  we 


;36(J  REV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS. 

will  simply  express  our  conviction,  and  that  of  all  who 
intimately  knew  him,  that  he  was  a  man  of  God,  a 
faithful  pastor  and  a  good   minister  of  Jesus  Christ." 

But  these  expressions  of  tribute  to  the  memory  of 
Rev.  J.  M.  Challiss  were  not  confined  to  his  own 
State.  They  came  from  neighboring  States  and  from 
the  far  West. 

During  the  session  of  the  Kansas  Baptist  State  Con- 
vention, held  in  the  city  of  Atchison,  early  in  June, 
1868,  his  death  was  announced  to  that  body.  We 
quote  from  the  proceedings  which  followed,  as  pub- 
lished in  a  paper  of  that  city. 

Rev.  L.  A.  Alderson  then  offered  the  following  re- 
solution : 

^^  Resolved,  That  we  cherish,  with  tender  regard,  the 
memory  of  Rev.  Jas.  M.  Challiss,  of  Bridgeton,  N. 
J.,  who  acted  in  the  organization  of  this  Convention, 
having  previously  aided  in  the  organization  of  the 
Baptist  State  Convention  of  New  Jersey,  and  who, 
having  preached  the  gospel  a  full  half  century,  went 
to  his  rest  on  the  15th  day  of  April  last,  in  the  70th 
year  of  his  age. 

"  Mr.  Alderson  said  that  he  offered  this  resolution 
feeling  assured  that  it  but  expressed  the  sense  of  the 
Convention,  and  of  all  who  knew  the  venerable  ser- 
vant of  God,  who  after  a  long  life,  conspicuous  always 
for  the  most  devoted  Christianity  and  the  most  ardent 


EEV.  JAMES  M.   CIIALLISS.  367 

and  untiring  zeal  in  behalf  of  the  church,  had  at  last 
passed  away  to  that  '  kingdom  not  made  with  hands, 
eternal  in  the  heavens.'  He  referred,  with  deep  feel- 
ing, to  the  profound  interest  Rev.  Mr.  Challiss  took 
in  the  organization  of  the  Baptist  Convention  of 
Kansas,  and  to  the  energy  and  zeal  he  had  manifested 
at  its  first  meeting.  Those  who  were  present  on  that 
occasion  would  never,  he  said,  forget  how  earnestly  he 
prayed  that  the  blessing  of  God  might  attend  their 
labors,  nor  the  wise  and  sagacious  counsel  and  advice 
which  his  long  experience  and  sincere  piety  enabled 
him  to  give.  Brother  Challiss  also  felt  the  deepest 
interest  in  the  erection  of  the  house  of  worship  in 
which  we  are  now  assembled.  He  manifested  the 
warmest  zeal  in  aiding  and  assisting  the  little  congre- 
gation which  undertook  its  building,  and  to  his  efforts 
the  success  which  finally  attended  the  work  is  largely 
due. 

"He  was  esteemed  and  honored  by  the  Baptist 
denomination  as  one  of  their  most  able,  devoted,  and 
zealous  clergymen,  and  profound  sorrow  was  felt  at  his 
death. 

"  The  speaker  deemed  it  peculiarly  appropriate  that 
the  Convention  of  this  state,  at  the  organization  of 
which  he  was  present,  and  in  the  labors  and  success 
of  which  he  felt  so  deep  an  interest,  should  testify  their 

sense  of  bereavement  at  his  death,  and  their  esteem  for 

:51  ■■■ 


368  ^^^'-  J-'^^IES  M.   CHALLISS. 

his  exalted  character  and  life-long  devotion  to  the 
ministry  of  God's  word  by  the  passage  of  a  resolution 
such  as  he  had  presented. 

"Rev.  E..  Atkinson  said  that  it  gave  him  great  plea- 
sure to  add  his  testimony  to  what  had  already  been  so 
truthfully  said  of  Rev.  Mr.  Challiss.  He  had,  he 
said,  sat  for  years  in  the  church  with  him,  and  he 
knew  the  zeal,  devotion,  and  energy  with  which  Mr. 
C.  had  labored  in  the  service  of  his  Father.  Whoever 
was  absent  at  the  assembling  of  the  church,  conven- 
tion, or  boards,  he  was  always  there. 

"  He  w^as  pre-eminently  a  man  of  God.  His  exam- 
ple \vas  the  pure  gold  of  active,  disinterested,  earnest, 
faithful  Christianity.  Often  had  the  speaker  seen  him 
in  the  Convention  of  New  Jersey,  gray-haired  and 
venerable  with  years ;  and  when  the  younger  men  were 
excited  by  discussion  on  some  contested  point,  he 
would  rise  and  silence  us  by  saying,  in  his  impressive 
manner :  '  Jesus  is  listening,  brothers  !  Jesus  is  lis- 
tening.' So  he  poured  oil  on  the  troubled  waters,  and 
so  he  always  brought  us  back  to  a  sense  of  our  duty 
and  our  position." 

"  The  Resolution  was  adopted  by  a  unanimous 
vote." 

Of  the  many  individual  letters  received,  bearing 
tributes  to  his  memory,  or  words  of  condolence  for  the 
afflicted  family,  only  t^vo  can  be  referred  to. 


REV.  JAMES  M.   CHALLISS.  3^9 

An  intelligent  Christian  lady  wrote  to  the  afflicted 
widow, — "  You,  my  dear  friend,  can  take  sad  pleasure 
in  reviewing  the  past  life  of  your  sainted  husband, 
knowing  he  was  a  successful  laborer  in  the  service  of 
his  Master.  A  kind  and  winning  way  he  had  of 
arousing  sinners  and  pointing  them  to  the  Lamb  of 
God,  that  none  could  but  feel  under  his  ministry." 

The  Rev.  James  E.  Welch,  D.  D.,  an  aged  and  ven- 
erable minister  of  the  gospel,  wrote  from  his  home 
in  Missouri, — "  I  have  been  informed  that  the  family 
of  our  dear  brother.  Rev.  James  M.  Challiss,  deceased, 
design  to  publish  a  memoir  of  his  life.  I  am  glad  to 
hear  it,  for  I  think  those  of  us  who  knew  him  inti- 
mately for  forty  years,  whenever  we  read  it,  will  be 
ready  to  exclaim  with  an  apostle,  '  I  thank  my  God 
upon  every  remembrance  of  you.'  Yes,  there  are  some 
ministering  brethren  of  such  sociable  and  amiable  dis- 
position, and  so  unassuming  and  kind,  that  we  never 
think  of  them  without  feeling  disposed  to  '  thank  God ' 
that  such  men  ever  lived,  and  that  we  had  the  happi- 
ness of  being  associated  with  them  in  labors  of  love,  to 
spread  the  gospel  of  our  divine  Redeemer.  Such  was 
James  M.  Challiss,  whose  death  we  all  lament." 

With  these  tributes  to  his  memory,  laid  as  a  garland 
upon  his  grave  to  blend  their  fragrance  with  the 
fragrance  of  his  whole  life,  we  turn  away  from  the 
place  where  his  dust  sleeps,  rejoicing  that  we  sorrow 


370  REV.  JAMES  M.   CUALLISS. 

not  as  those  who  have  no  hope,  but  know  that  to  those 
who  live  for  Christ,  to  die  is  gain.  So  we  comfort 
our  hearts  with  these  words : 

"  Precious  in  the  sight  of  the  Lord  is  the  death  of  his  saints." 
"  The  memory  of  the  just  is  blessed." 
"  Servant  of  God,  well  done ; 

Rest  from  thy  loved  employ  : 
The  battle  fought,  the  victory  won, 

Enter  thy  Master's  joy. 
The  pains  of  death  are  past ; 
Labor  and  sorrow  cease ; 
And  life's  long  warfare  closed  at  last. 

Thy  soul  is  found  in  peace. 
Soldier  of  Christ,  well  done  ; 

Praise  be  thy  new  employ  ; 
And,  while  eternal  ages  run, 
Rest  in  thy  Saviour's  joy." 


.V..MV>i>^.^ 


m 


